By Kelly Were
India launched a series of missile strikes early Wednesday into Pakistani-controlled Kashmir, killing at least 26 people—including a child—and injuring 46, in what Pakistan has condemned as “an act of war.”
The strikes mark a major escalation in hostilities between the nuclear-armed neighbors and come just over two weeks after a deadly militant attack claimed the lives of 26 people, mostly Indian Hindu tourists, in Pahalgam, Kashmir.
Indian authorities said the missile strikes targeted militant infrastructure allegedly linked to the April massacre, which occurred in the Indian-administered portion of the disputed territory with the strikes being named #OperationSindoor
“#OperationSindoor is Bharat’s response to the brutal killing of our innocent brothers in Pahalgam,” Indian Home Minister Amit Shah posted on social media platform X, expressing pride in the armed forces and using the Hindi name for India.
Pakistan’s government has denied any involvement in the April attack and responded forcefully to Wednesday’s airstrikes. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the strikes as a violation of sovereignty and warned that Islamabad would retaliate. “Pakistan has every right to give a robust response to this act of war imposed by India, and a strong response is indeed being given,” Sharif stated.
In a swift countermeasure, Pakistan claimed it had shot down several Indian fighter jets, with debris from two aircraft reportedly falling into villages in Indian-administered Kashmir. Indian officials said at least seven civilians were killed by Pakistani shelling during the ensuing exchange.
The fresh outbreak of violence has reignited long-simmering tensions over Kashmir, a region divided between India and Pakistan but claimed in full by both. The two countries have fought multiple wars over the territory, with periodic flare-ups threatening to destabilize the region.
Meanwhile, nationalist fervor gripped Indian media following the strikes. Broadcast headlines such as “How India Crushed the Enemy” and “India Strikes Pakistan Hard” dominated airwaves. One prominent news outlet even featured a graphic of Prime Minister Narendra Modi wielding a Captain America-style shield emblazoned with the Indian flag.
Although international observers have piled pressure on both New Delhi and Pakistan to de-escalate tensions, both parties have remained firm in their positions.
U.S., China, Russia and Saudi Arabia have urged both sides to exercise restraint. Iran has offered to mediate.With nuclear capabilities on both sides and nationalist sentiment on the rise, the risk of broader conflict looms large.
