India Launches Pre-Dawn Missile Strikes on Terror Targets in Pakistan and PoK; Pakistan Vows Retaliation
New Delhi, May 7 — In a major escalation following the deadly terror attack in Jammu & Kashmir’s Anantnag district, the Indian armed forces launched precision missile strikes on nine terror camps across Pakistan and Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (PoK) early Wednesday morning. The strikes targeted strongholds of Pakistan-based terror groups Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed in Muridke and Bahawalpur, among other locations.
According to defence sources, the strikes were carried out at 1:44am as a “measured and precise response” to the April 22 terrorist attack in Pahalgam, which killed 25 Indian civilians and one Nepali national. The Indian government has linked the attack to operatives with known ties to terror groups operating from Pakistani soil.
“This is a clear message to those who shelter terrorism – India will not tolerate bloodshed of innocent citizens,” a senior defence official told reporters, adding that the operations were “surgical in nature” and designed to avoid civilian casualties.
In a strongly worded statement, Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the missile attacks as an “act of war” and warned of a strong response. “The Pakistani nation and our armed forces are fully prepared. We will retaliate with full force and never allow the enemy’s nefarious goals to succeed,” Sharif said during a televised address.
The strikes came just hours before a scheduled nationwide civil defence drill across 244 districts in India, designed to simulate responses to a large-scale external attack. Indian officials insist the timing was coincidental but added that the exercise now carries increased relevance in light of recent developments.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in an emergency briefing, reiterated India’s zero-tolerance policy on terrorism. “We will pursue the conspirators of this barbaric attack to the ends of the earth. Justice will be delivered in ways they cannot imagine,” he said.
Tensions are high across the region, with both militaries on heightened alert. International observers have urged restraint from both sides to prevent the conflict from spiraling.
www.ichelnewsnetwork.com