New Delhi has struck what it calls terrorist targets on the territory of the neighboring state in response to a deadly act of terrorism

The Indian military has launched a series of strikes against targets in Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir region. The attacks were a response to a deadly terrorist assault in the Indian Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir two weeks ago, the nation's Defense Ministry has said.

Pakistan, which branded the operation an act of "unprovoked aggression," responded with shelling of its own, according to the Indian ministry. Islamabad also said that it reserves the right to respond to India's actions in a way it deems appropriate.

Start of Operation Sindoor

India announced on Wednesday that its armed forces had struck nine "terrorist camps" overnight in Pakistan and Pakistan-Administered Kashmir region, calling it 'Operation Sindoor'. New Delhi described the attack as "focused, measured and non-escalatory."

Pakistan's military and civilians were not targets of the operation, Indian officials stated.

Pakistan's initial response

The Indian strike killed at least 26 civilians and left 46 people injured, Pakistan's military spokesman Lt. Gen. Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry said. Pakistani Defense Minister Khawaja Asif told GeoTV that the Indian strikes hit civilian areas, including a mosque. Islamabad also branded the strike "unprovoked and illegal aggression."

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif stated that Islamabad "has every right to respond forcefully to this act of war." The Indian military then reported Pakistani shelling of Jammu and Kashmir, which killed 15 civilians and injured 43 people.

Both sides threaten further escalation

Islamabad "reserves the right to respond in time, place, and manner of its choosing," Pakistan's National Security Committee (NSC) stated following an emergency meeting presided over by Sharif. The government gave the military a "free hand" to strike back at India, the local media reported following the announcement.

New Delhi vowed to retaliate to any military action taken by Islamabad. "If Pakistan responds, India will respond," the nation's officials told more than a dozen foreign envoys briefed on the situation.

International reaction

Russia urged both sides to exercise restraint and called for de-escalation. Moscow expressed its hope that India and Pakistan would be able to resolve their differences "through peaceful political and diplomatic means," the Foreign Ministry said, adding that Russia also "decisively condemns all acts of terrorism."

Iran and Bangladesh called the escalation a cause for serious concern and called on both sides to exercise restraint as well. The UK urged New Delhi and Islamabad to find a "swift, diplomatic path forward."

Causes of escalation

The Indian strike was a response to a terrorist attack on tourists at Pahalgam in Kashmir two weeks ago, New Delhi said. A total of 26 people were killed in the incident.

The attack was initially claimed by 'The Resistance Front', a group believed to be linked to the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba. New Delhi said its investigators were able to identify the planners and backers of the attack, as well as communication nodes used by terrorists in and to Pakistan.

Islamabad has vehemently denied that it had any role in the attack and has called for an impartial probe. The incident had already led to a spike in tensions and several rounds of non-military escalation between the two nuclear-armed South Asian neighbors over the past weeks. India and Pakistan have fought four wars since both gained independence from the UK in 1947.

(RT.com)