India and Pakistan have accused each other of cross-border missile strikes against major military targets, the most significant escalation so far in the brewing conflict between the two nuclear-armed neighbours.
On Saturday, India accused Pakistan of launching strikes on dozens of airbases and military headquarters across north India, using long-range weapons, drones and fighter aircraft. The accusations came a few hours after Pakistan said India had fired six surface-to-air missiles targeting three of Pakistan’s most important military bases early on Saturday morning.
Shortly afterwards, Pakistan officials confirmed they had begun their counter-attack against India, under the name Operation Bunyan Ul Marsoos, a phrase from the Qur’an roughly translating to “wall of lead”.
The claims of missile attacks on military targets deep inside India and Pakistan were seen as a worrying escalation in hostilities, bringing the two countries the closest they have been to war in decades.
According to the Indian army spokesperson Col Sofiya Qureshi, Pakistan struck first on Saturday. At a press conference, the Indian army accused Pakistan of attacking 26 sites in India, including the Pathankot military airfield in Punjab, Srinagar airport and Udhampur air force base in Indian-administered Kashmir, as well as “deplorable and cowardly” attacks on civilian infrastructure.
Qureshi said the “Indian Armed Forces successfully neutralised these threats” but added that some damage was done to equipment and personnel at four airbases. The foreign secretary, Vikram Misri, said claims by Pakistani media that airbases and advanced weapons systems had been destroyed in the strikes were “heavy on lies, misinformation and propaganda”.
The Indian army alleged its attack on Pakistan’s military bases on Saturday was in retaliation for high-speed missiles fired at several air bases in Punjab at around 2am. “In a swift and calibrated response, Indian Armed Forces carried out precision attacks only on identified military targets,” said Qureshi.
In the hours after the strikes, Pakistan’s deputy prime minister and foreign minister, Ishaq Dar, told local media that if India stopped here “we will consider to stop here” and that the ball for de-escalation was in India’s court. India also said it was committed to “non-escalation” provided the Pakistan side reciprocated.
However, the Indian army claimed Pakistan was still mobilising its troops, in what they regarded as further aggression. “Pakistan military has been observed to be moving their troops into forward areas, indicating offensive intent to further escalate the situation,” said Qureshi.
Pakistan’s version of events was different to that of India. In an address broadcast on state TV at around 3.30am, the military spokesperson Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry claimed India had struck first, using fighter jets to fire surface-to-air missiles at Nur Khan, Murid and Shorkot military bases. He said the “majority” of India’s missiles were intercepted by air defence systems.
Nur Khan airbase is in Rawalpindi, where the military has its headquarters, and is around 6 miles from the Pakistani capital, Islamabad. In the aftermath of the strikes, Pakistan shut down its air space.
The strike on Nur Khan caused mass panic in the densely populated area. Video from the scene shared on social media showed flames and smoke billowing into the night sky, with residents running into the streets. “There was a loud explosion which woke everyone up. It was so scary, everyone is still in a panic,” said one resident living nearby.
Chaudhry called the strikes “blatant acts of aggression by India” and said they were “part of a larger sinister plan to push the region and beyond into havoc”. Just over an hour later, Pakistan declared it had begun its counter-attack on military sites in India.
Speaking to Geo News after the counter-attack began, Dar said Pakistan had been left with no choice but to retaliate.
“There was no other option because India showed no sincerity in response to the diplomatic efforts made by friendly countries,” the foreign minister said. “We acted only after India continued firing drones and missiles.”
The fighting this week was first inflamed on Wednesday after Indian missiles struck nine sites in Pakistan, killing 31 people. India has said those strikes were in response to an attack in Indian-administered Kashmir late last month, in which militants killed 25 Hindu tourists and a guide, which they blamed on Pakistani-backed extremists.
The situation escalated further after India accused Pakistan of two consecutive nights of drone attacks. India claimed to have intercepted more than 400 drones targeting cities, military bases and places of worship across the north of the country on Thursday.
In retaliation, India said it had launched four drone strikes at Pakistan, directly targeting military defence infrastructure.
In the aftermath of Pakistan’s strikes, tensions remained high across India. Heavy shelling and gunfire were reported overnight across the Line of Control, the heavily militarised, de facto border dividing Kashmir between India and Pakistan, with several civilians killed.
In India, cities and districts in Punjab, Haryana and across Indian-administered Kashmir were put on red alert, with residents told to remain indoors and blackout orders enforced.
The Indian military said it had actively begun large-scale mobilisation of additional forces to the border and had activated its reserve Territorial Army to ensure full operational strength.
The US state department confirmed that the secretary of state, Marco Rubio, had spoken to Pakistan’s army chief, Gen Asim Munir, and India’s foreign minister, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, early on Saturday morning. Rubio called for a de-escalation and “offered US assistance in starting constructive talks in order to avoid future conflicts”, a state department spokesperson said.
