ISLAMABAD: In a rapidly escalating crisis between South Asia’s nuclear-armed neighbours, Pakistan on Wednesday authorised its armed forces to respond to unprovoked, cowardly, and unlawful air strikes by India that targeted civilian areas across its territory overnight.
The announcement followed an emergency meeting of the high-powered National Security Committee (NSC), comprising top civilian and military leadership and chaired by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
According to a statement issued after NSC huddle, the Indian troops launched coordinated missile, air, and drone attacks late on the night of May 6-7, striking six locations including Sialkot, Shakargarh, Muridke, and Bahawalpur in Punjab, as well as Kotli and Muzaffarabad in Azad Jammu and Kashmir.
Pakistan launches counter- strike
The Indian attacks martyred 26 civilians – including men, women, and children – and left another 46 injured. Several mosques and civilian infrastructure were damaged in the attacks, and the Neelum-Jhelum Hydropower Project, a critical national asset, was targeted, as well.
The NSC condemned India’s actions as an act of war and asserted that Pakistan retains the right to respond under Article 51 of the United Nations Charter, which affirms a state’s inherent right to self-defence.
The committee further said that the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) shot down five Indian fighter jets – including the French-made Rafale, a source of national pride for India – as well as one drone.
The Indian strikes, according to NSC, were justified by New Delhi on the basis of alleged terrorist camps inside Pakistani territory – a charge Pakistan has vehemently denied. In its statement, the NSC asserted that Pakistan had offered a credible, transparent and neutral investigation following an earlier incident on April 22, which India had also blamed on Pakistani-based elements.
The offer, NSC insisted, was not accepted by India. International journalists had been invited to visit the alleged sites on May 6 and further visits were scheduled for May 7, lending weight to Islamabad’s claim that no such camps exist.
“The Indian leadership, bereft of any morality, has now gone to the extent of attacking innocent civilians in order to satiate its delusional thoughts and short-sighted political objectives,” the NSC statement read.
The NSC also warned that Indian aggression posed a serious risk to international civil aviation. The attacks, it added, endangered multiple commercial airliners from Gulf nations flying through the region’s airspace during the strikes.
The NSC emphasised that the deliberate targeting of non-combatants violates international humanitarian law and basic norms of human behaviour. “Attacking its innocent people is neither tolerable nor acceptable to Pakistan,” the statement continued, declaring that the responsibility for any consequences of further escalation would rest solely with India.
In a solemn moment during the meeting, the forum offered Fateha for the souls of the martyrs and extended condolences to grieving families.
The government expressed admiration for the armed forces’ swift defensive response and reaffirmed the nation’s unity and readiness to repel any further aggression. “The nation stands galvanised.”
“Pakistan remains committed to peace, with dignity and honour, and reiterates that it shall never allow any violation of its sovereignty, territorial integrity, or permit any harm to its proud people,” it added.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
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