In early May 2025, India-Pakistan relations reached a new high of tension. India conducted a cross-border strike (codenamed Operation Sindoor) against militant camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir.
- One missile struck a mosque in Bahawalpur (BWP), Punjab province of Pakistan, killing at least 13 people including young children
- The strikes were in retaliation for a April 2025 attack in Indian-held Kashmir that killed 26 Hindu tourists, which New Delhi attributed to Pakistan-aligned militants
- Islamabad denounced the May attacks as an “act of war” and threatened revenge.
- The attack is a sharp escalation of India-Pakistan tensions and marks the volatile Indo-Pak military confrontation along the border.
Operation Sindoor:
During the night of May 6–7, 2025 the Indian Air Force carried out precision bombing of nine targets in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir characterized as “terrorist infrastructure”
Indian authorities reported that the strikes targeted Islamist militant camps (such as Jaish-e-Mohammad and Lashkar-e-Taiba) where attacks in the recent past were being planned.
Bahawalpur Strike:
One missile hit the Subhan Allah mosque complex close to Bahawalpur, killing at least 13 individuals (two three-year-old girls are mentioned among the dead in reports)
A child, a woman and a man were injured in the explosion, according to Pakistani sources
The Subhan mosque was named by India as the Markaz Subhan Allah, alleged headquarters of Jaish-e-Mohammad close to Bahawalpur.
Other Targets:
Besides Bahawalpur, Muridke (Punjab province) and Kotli and Muzaffarabad in Pakistan-administered Kashmir were hit by the missiles
Muridke is where Lashkar-e-Taiba training camps are located, and Kotli and Muzaffarabad were hit, say Pakistani authorities. According to Pakistani officials, six targets were struck and dozens of missiles launched in total.
Casualties:
Pakistan’s military counted 26 civilians dead and 46 wounded in the attack
- The overall death toll (across other locations) was reported as 19 or more by independent media
- In Bahawalpur alone there were 13
- Pakistan’s army spokesman emphasized that only civilians were targeted, while an ISPR statement pointed out the strikes targeted areas that were deemed centers of proscribed militant groups.
Pakistan’s Response:
Islamabad promptly condemned India’s action as an “unprovoked, blatant violation” of its sovereignty and an “act of war”.
The National Security Committee was called by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who approved military retaliation. Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry called on the global community to put pressure on India.
ISPR head Lt. Gen. Ahmed Sharif publicly stated that Pakistan would retaliate against the attack, but he did not specify how.
Islamabad even claimed to have downed Indian aircraft and a drone over its skies.
Raising the fear of a full-scale military confrontation. Meanwhile Punjab’s government called a state of emergency and grounded civilian flights under security alerts.
The Indian government justified the attacks as legitimate punishment for terrorism. The Ministry of Defence said the operation was “focused, measured and non-escalatory,” and only attacking terrorist camps, not any Pakistani military installations.
India asserted its planes struck locations in PoK from which recent attacks were plotted.
As a response, the Indian Army’s only official comment was, “Justice is served.”
India claimed the operation was within its right to protect itself against cross-border terrorism (the attack on pilgrims in Kashmir). Indian spokesmen also referred to earlier events, saying factions in Pakistan’s Punjab had been planning violence in India for a long time.
The aerial warfare has not been limited to air strikes. Shortly after the missile strike, intense shelling and aerial exchanges erupted along the Line of Control (LoC) in Kashmir. Pakistan’s military claimed to shoot down Indian aircraft (three planes and a drone) and engaged in artillery duels with Indian troops.
India’s military, for their part, reported Pakistani shelling killed civilians in Indian-held Kashmir.
These interactions triggered global alarm:
- UN Secretary-General António Guterres cautioned “the world cannot afford a Crisis & Military Strikes confrontation between India and Pakistan”
- U.S. President Donald Trump (in office in 2025) sounded the alarm and called for rapid de-escalation
- U.S. and U.N. envoys have since been pushing both sides to initiate communication lines and call for restraint
The United States even extended its hand through its special envoys to urge New Delhi and Islamabad to negotiate and avert further escalation.
This escalation comes in the middle of one of the worst India-Pakistan crises in decades. Analysts highlight that the two nuclear-armed neighbors have cycled through crises but seldom open a cross-border attack. International relations professor Hassan Abbas explained that “we need courage to imagine cooperative war is a luxury no one can afford,” and the perilous stakes.
Indeed, the incident underscores deep-seated India-Pakistan tensions over Kashmir and regional militancy. Ever since partition, Kashmir has been a flashpoint – this latest episode shows how rapidly a local incident can spiral into a wider crisis along the LoC. South Asia’s security environment is fraught: each side’s military moves are watched anxiously by regional powers like China and by global capitals worried about wider war.
Immediate Crisis:
- Reported Indian missile attack struck a mosque in Bahawalpur, Pakistan (Punjab) and killed 13 (children included)
- Other strikes target Muridke (Punjab) and Kotli, Muzaffarabad (PoK)
- Pakistan terms the raids an “act of war”
and threatened a military strike.
Casualties and Claims:
- Pakistan claims 26 civilians killed across the country
- India claims all of the targets were militant camps and not military targets
- Pakistan’s military confirms shooting down of Indian aircraft and keeps shelling along Kashmir LoC.
International Impact:
Global leaders are calling for restraint. The UN has appealed for de-escalation
and US envoys have persuaded both governments to get back into talks
.
Analysts indicate serious regional instability if talks fail.
Wider Significance:
The conflict highlights persisting India-Pakistan competition and the vulnerability of South Asian security. Analysts stress that diplomacy is essential; as one commentator suggested, cooperation is the sole plausible option in a region in which conflict would be a “luxury no one can afford.”
The latest Bahawalpur attack and subsequent firestorm demonstrate the compelling necessity for de-escalation. With Line of Control tensions already underway and mutual suspicion at all-time highs, the danger of unintended wider conflict hangs over the region. In such a volatile atmosphere, fact-based news reporting and diplomatic alertness are more essential than ever. Readers are urged to remain informed through reliable sources and to support diplomatic initiatives for regional stability. Only persistent dialogue and global mediation can assist in de-escalating the current crisis and restoring lasting peace between Pakistan and India.
