India on Thursday night swiftly thwarted fresh attempts by Pakistan to strike military sites with drones and missiles, including in Jammu and Pathankot, after foiling similar bids at 15 places in northern and western regions of the country.
Tensions have soared between the two countries amid fears of a wider conflict, following the Pahalgam massacre and the retaliatory Operation Sindoor.
In related developments, Indian External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Thursday night spoke to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and conveyed to him that India will firmly counter any attempts by Pakistan to escalate the situation.
Jaishankar also had a phone call with EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas. In addition to this global diplomacy, the Indian minister received the Saudi Arabian Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Adel al-Jubeir, who landed in Delhi on Thursday to meet India’s top leadership with a focus on de-escalating tensions between India and Pakistan.
The renewed attempts and intense shelling by the Pakistani forces on the Line of Control (LoC) and the International Border (IB) in Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, and Rajasthan came after India on Thursday morning targeted Pakistani air defence systems at multiple cities, with one in Lahore being “neutralised”.
The Indian armed forces on Wednesday had carried out precise missile strikes on nine terror targets in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) and Pakistan under ‘Operation Sindoor’.
As the Ministry of Defence (MoD) reiterated that any attack on military sites in India will invite a “suitable response”, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said that only Pakistan can decide if it wants to de-escalate tensions with India, as New Delhi had responded to the “original escalation” triggered by the Pahalgam massacre.
Blackouts in several cities and towns in Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, and Rajasthan were enforced as drones were sighted from across the border.
Military stations at Jammu and Pathankot and Udhampur were targeted by Pakistani-origin drones and missiles along the International Border in J&K [on May 8]. The threats were swiftly neutralised using kinetic and non-kinetic capabilities.
Indian Ministry of Defence
Indian air defence units successfully intercepted at least eight missiles fired by Pakistan towards the border areas of Jammu, including the strategically important Jammu Airport at Satwari on Thursday evening, defence sources said. The missiles were aimed at key locations, including Satwari (Jammu Airport), Samba, RS Pura, and Arnia, they said.
A sudden power outage plunged Jammu city into darkness following two loud explosions, likely resulting from the interception of intruding drones. Immediately after, sirens echoed throughout the city, alerting panic-stricken residents to seek shelter.
The sound of massive explosions was heard in Jaisalmer and a blackout was enforced in western Rajasthan districts bordering Pakistan, plunging the whole stretch into darkness, police said.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke separately with Indian External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, emphasising on the need for de-escalation. He reiterated his calls for Pakistan to take concrete steps to end any support for terrorist groups.
Jaishankar conveyed to Rubio that India will firmly counter any attempts by Pakistan to escalate the situation.
As tensions escalated, US President Donald Trump asserted that he wants India and Pakistan to “stop” what he described as “tit for tat” actions, saying if he can do anything to “help”, he will be there.
As Indian leaders across the political spectrum projected a united front, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is reported to have told an all-party meeting that at least 100 hardcore terrorists and their associates were killed in the Indian strikes.
At another event, he assured the nation that no limit will become an obstacle for the Government in protecting India’s sovereignty. “We are fully prepared for such responsible responses in the future as well,” he said.
In a press statement, the MoD said that on the night of May 7-8, Pakistan attempted to engage a number of military targets in Awantipura, Srinagar, Jammu, Pathankot, Amritsar, Kapurthala, Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Adampur, Bhatinda, Chandigarh, Nal, Phalodi, Uttarlai, and Bhuj. “These attempts were neutralised by the Integrated Counter Unmanned Aircraft System (Grid and Air Defence systems),” said the MoD.
Sources in the defence and security establishment said the S-400 missile defence systems, surface-to-air missiles and the integrated counter-unmanned aircraft system were used in foiling the Pakistani attempts.
The statement said that the debris of these attacks is now being recovered from a number of locations that prove the Pakistani strikes. “It was also reiterated that any attack on military targets in India will invite a suitable response,” it said.
The MoD statement further said that the armed forces targeted on Thursday morning air defence radars and systems at a number of locations in Pakistan.
“Indian response has been in the same domain with the same intensity as Pakistan,” said the ministry. “It has been reliably learnt that an air defence system at Lahore has been neutralised.”
In its response on Thursday morning, India launched kamikaze drones, also called ‘suicide’ drones.
In Islamabad, Pakistan Army spokesman Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry claimed that drones launched by India were neutralised in Lahore, Gujranwala, Chakwal, Bahawalpur, Miano, Karachi, Chhor, Rawalpindi, and Attock. He said that one drone crashed near Lahore and four soldiers sustained injuries as a result of the attack.
An official told PTI that at least four drones hit the Lahore cantonment area.
In New Delhi, the MoD said that Pakistan has increased the intensity of its unprovoked firing across the LoC, using mortars and heavy calibre artillery in areas in Kupwara, Baramulla, Uri, Poonch, Mendhar, and Rajouri sectors in Jammu and Kashmir.
“Sixteen innocent lives have been lost, including three women and five children, due to Pakistani firing,” said the ministry. Here too, India was compelled to respond to bring mortar and artillery fire from Pakistan to a halt, it added.
In a powerful retaliation to the Pahalgam massacre, Indian armed forces early on Wednesday carried out missile strikes on terror targets in Pakistan, including Bahawalpur, a stronghold of the Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) terror group. A total of 26 people, mostly terrorists, were killed in the Pahalgam attack on April 22.
Saudi minister of state carries message from leadership
Saudi Arabian Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Adel al-Jubeir, who arrived on Thursday on an unannounced visit to New Delhi, is learnt to have carried a message from the Saudi leadership.
The Saudi minister held talks with Indian External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and discussed the developing situation.
“A good meeting with @AdelAljubeir, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs of Saudi Arabia this morning,” Jaishankar said in a social media post on May 8. “Shared India’s perspectives on firmly countering terrorism,” he said.
The Saudi deputy foreign minister arrived in India hours after the Iranian foreign minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi flew into New Delhi late on Wednesday for a previously scheduled visit. He was to co-chair a meeting of the bilateral joint commission with Jaishankar.
