Pakistan warns to “revenge” deaths on India’s strike
By Sajjad Qayyum and Bhuvan Bagga in Poonch
Pakistan Muzaffarabad (AFP) May 7, 2025
Pakistan warned that this would “revenge” those killed by Indian air strikes, and what New Delhi is talking about is the attack on Kashmir, which shows that amid the worst violence in decades in nuclear-weapon neighbors, is about to escalate.
So far, at least 43 deaths have been reported, and Islamabad said 31 civilians were killed by Indian strikes and opened fire along the border, with at least 12 more people killed in Pakistani shelling in New Delhi.
“We have made this commitment and we will avenge every drop of blood of these martyrs,” said Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in his speech to the country late Wednesday.
Indian troops said it destroyed nine “terrorist camps” in Pakistan in the early hours of Wednesday, two weeks after accusing Islamabad in New Delhi.
Pakistan military spokesman Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry said five Indian jets were shot down on the border.
A senior Indian security source who asked not to be named said three of its fighter jets had crashed in their home country.
The two sides exchanged heavy cannons along the control line that split Kashmir, both of which claimed completely but managed separately.
South Asian neighbors have fought two total wars on the division of territory, as they were carved from the subcontinent after gaining independence from British rule in 1947.
Muhammad Salman said: “There are horrifying sounds at night and everyone feels panic.
Tariq Mir, 24, added: “We are moving to a safer place…we are homeless now.”
India said its actions were “concentrated, measured and non-estimated”.
Pakistan’s Defense Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif accused Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi of launching a strike to “cover” his domestic popularity, adding that Islamabad “will resolve the score soon”.
– “People Escape” –
On Wednesday night, a Pakistan military spokesman said shootings were “in progress” in control and Islamabad would take retaliatory actions against the air strikes.
Chaudhry reiterated Pakistan’s “right to respond to self-defense, times, places and ways” and added that the government has “authorized” the armed forces.
According to the Pakistani military, India’s largest strike was the attack at an Islamic seminary near the Punjab city of Bahwalpur, killing 13 people.
The government health and education complex in Muridke, 30 km (20 miles) from Lahore, was blown up with the mosque in Muzaffarabad (Kashmir in the main area of Pakistan), killing its guardians.
According to the Pakistani military, four of the children who died in the attack on Wednesday were killed.
Pakistan also said a hydropower plant in Kashmir is a target in India for damage to the dam structure after India threatened to stop water flowing on the side of the border.
Indian Defense Minister Rajnath Singh said the operation was the “right to respond” after the attacks of tourists in Pahalgam in Kashmir last month.
Pakistan denied the killing of 26 people on April 22, mainly by a Hindu man.
In Muzaffarabad, UN military observers arrived at the mosques that Islamabad said and inspected the mosques attacked by India.
Residents collected damaged Quran copies from concrete, wood and iron debris.
In Kashmir, managed by India, residents suffered panic from Pakistan shelling.
“There are fires that damage houses and damage many houses in Pakistan,” Wasim Ahmed, 29, said from the village of Salamabad. “People fled.”
– Restraint required –
It is widely believed that India will respond to the Pahargam attack, which was blamed on Pakistani group Lashkar-e-Taiba, an unspecified terrorist group.
The two countries have been undertaking threats and diplomatic measures for several days, and Pakistan has conducted two missile tests.
Since April 24, Indian troops have reported night shootings along the military control line.
Diplomats and world leaders pile up pressure to take a step back from the brink.
A spokesman for the United Nations Chief Antonio Guterres said: “The world cannot afford the military confrontation between India and Pakistan.”
On Wednesday, U.S. President Donald Trump called for a stop to fight, adding: “If I can do any help, I will be there.”
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi expects New Delhi to be expected two days after his visit to Islamabad, as Tehran tries to mediate.
Since 1989, Kashmir rebels managed in India have rebelled, seeking independence or merged with Pakistan.
India often blames Pakistan on armed groups supporting its forces in Kashmir, an allegation that Islamabad denies.
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