India launched missile strikes on targets in Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir on Tuesday night, prompting retaliatory fire as both sides report civilian casualties amid soaring tensions following a deadly attack on Indian tourists. Pakistan claims to have shot down five Indian jets, while India blames Pakistan-based militants for last month’s assault in Pahalgam—a charge Islamabad denies.
India’s overnight military offensive, dubbed Operation Sindoor, targeted what it described as “terrorist infrastructure” linked to the 22 April attack that killed 26 Hindu tourists in Indian-administered Kashmir. The Pakistani government in Islamabad reported 26 civilians killed and another 46 wounded in the Indian strikes. A cross-border shelling response by Pakistani forces left at least 10 dead in Kashmir.
Pakistan has also claimed to have shot down five Indian aircrafts in the worst clashes between the two countries in more than two decades, while Indian authorities reported three downed planes.
India has accused the Pakistani government of failing to prevent attacks in Kashmir, a region long disputed by both countries, and says its recent military strikes targeted what it described as terrorist camps operated by Islamist groups allegedly responsible for multiple attacks on Indian soil in recent years. Pakistan has denied any role in the recent terrorist attacks and has called for a neutral investigation into it.
