DE News Desk :
Tensions between nuclear-armed neighbours India and Pakistan surged on Wednesday after Indian missile strikes hit targets across the border, killing at least three civilians, including a child, according to Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif.
Speaking to AFP, Asif confirmed that the attacks struck “multiple locations, all civilian,” and said Islamabad has credible reports confirming the fatalities.
The Indian government described the action as “precision strikes” on what it claims were camps operating in Pakistan-administered Kashmir.
The move follows a deadly attack on Indian tourists in Pahalgam last month, which left 26 people dead and was allegedly carried out by militants from the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba, a group designated as a terrorist organisation by the United Nations.
India said nine sites were targeted in the operation.
Pakistan’s military reported three impacted areas — two in Pakistan-administered Kashmir and one in Bahawalpur, Punjab province, near the Indian border.
Loud explosions were reported by journalists in both regions.In response, Pakistan has vowed to retaliate.
“We will retaliate at a time and place of our choosing,” said Pakistani military spokesperson Lt. Gen. Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, denouncing the strikes as a “heinous provocation.”
The exchange marks a serious escalation in hostilities, with cross-border shelling reportedly occurring nightly since April 24 along the Line of Control in Kashmir.
The two countries have fought three wars since gaining independence from British rule in 1947, with Kashmir remaining a core dispute.
Diplomatic efforts are underway to contain the fallout.The U.S. State Department urged both sides to exercise restraint.
“We continue to urge Pakistan and India to work towards a responsible resolution that maintains long-term peace and regional stability,” said spokeswoman Tammy Bruce on Tuesday.
Indian police have issued wanted notices for three suspects, including two Pakistani nationals, believed to be affiliated with Lashkar-e-Taiba.
Pakistan has denied involvement in the Pahalgam attack and maintains it does not support militant groups operating in Indian-administered Kashmir.
Meanwhile, Pakistan’s military has conducted missile tests of its own in recent days, including a surface-to-surface missile capable of reaching the Indian capital.
India also announced civil defence drills on Wednesday across several regions to prepare civilians for potential attacks.
In parallel diplomatic developments, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi is expected in New Delhi after meeting Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif earlier this week.
Tehran has offered to mediate between the two countries.
Amid these developments, Modi added further tension by declaring India would stop the flow of river waters to Pakistan, indirectly referencing the Indus Waters Treaty, a decades-old water-sharing agreement.
“India’s water used to go outside, now it will flow for India,” Modi said during a speech in New Delhi.
Islamabad has previously warned that tampering with the treaty would be considered an “act of war.”
The renewed hostilities come against the backdrop of a long-running insurgency in Indian-administered Kashmir, where armed groups have been demanding independence or unification with Pakistan since 1989 — a conflict India has consistently blamed on cross-border support from Islamabad.