Pakistan has condemned India’s aggressive military actions and hostile diplomatic stance, holding New Delhi accountable for its reckless unilateral aggression, deliberate targeting of civilians, and blatant violations of international treaties.
Foreign Office Spokesperson Shafqat Ali Khan said on Friday that India has acted “as judge, jury and executioner,” launching cross-border attacks based on unverified social media accounts.
He said such actions were in clear violation of international norms and posed a serious threat to regional peace.
The FO spokesoperson further said investigations into the Patkhankot and Mumbai attacks could not progress due to India’s persistent non-cooperation, undermining the pursuit of justice.
He added that while India levels allegations against others, it consistently ignores its own documented role in destabilising the region.
The spokesperson asserted that Kulbhushan Jadhav, a serving Indian Navy Commander captured in Pakistan, remains living proof of Indian involvement in terrorist activities inside Pakistan.
He also cited the Samjhauta Express bombing, which resulted in the deaths of innocent civilians, including children, and involved Hindu extremists linked to India’s ruling party.
Rejecting India’s claim of targeting militant infrastructure, he said the strikes resulted in the martyrdom of civilians, including women and children.
He noted that mosques and the Neelum dam were among the targets, calling it a deliberate attack on Pakistan’s population. “India must be held accountable,” he said.
Commenting on water disputes, the spokesperson said the Indus Waters Treaty had stood the test of time, but India’s current suspension of its obligations was “illegal” and reflected a “blatant disregard for international treaties.” He emphasised that Pakistan is an agricultural country with a largely agrarian economy, and said India’s actions amounted to an open attack on both Pakistan and its people.
He also slammed the Indian Foreign Secretary’s recent remarks, calling them undiplomatic and irresponsible. 'We regret the use of such language. Better was expected,' he said, adding that the Indian government has developed a pattern of making “absurd and baseless claims.”
He further noted that India itself took the Kashmir dispute to the United Nations, yet now refuses to honour its commitments.
“India remains a key source of instability in South Asia, having blocked every serious effort toward regional cooperation,” he added.
Latest tensions
The latest escalation in tensions between India and Pakistan follows the April 22 attack in Pahalgam, Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK), which resulted in 26 fatalities. India immediately accused Pakistan-based elements of orchestrating the attack, although no evidence was provided. Islamabad has strongly rejected these allegations.
In retaliation, India closed the Wagah land border on April 23, suspended the Indus Waters Treaty, and revoked Pakistani visas. Pakistan responded by labeling any disruption to water flow as an "act of war" and closed the Wagah crossing on its side.
The situation escalated further on Wednesday, as reports from various cities in Pakistan, including Muzaffarabad, Kotli, Muridke, and Bahawalpur, detailed multiple explosions. Pakistan’s military spokesperson, Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, confirmed that Indian airstrikes had targeted multiple locations within Pakistan. In response, Pakistan launched swift air and ground operations.
Within the first hour of retaliation, Pakistan announced the downing of five Indian fighter jets, including four Rafale aircraft, which India had recently acquired from France to strengthen its air defenses following the failed Balakot operation in 2019.
"Pakistan could have shot down 10 Indian fighter jets," Lt Gen Chaudhry said during a press briefing. "But Pakistan chose to exercise restraint."
Despite the scale of the response, Indian media remained largely silent on the losses. The Hindu, a prominent Indian newspaper, initially reported that three Indian jets had been downed but later removed the article, likely under pressure from the Indian government to avoid further embarrassment.
An American commentator on CNN stated that the potential loss of Rafale jets would severely damage India’s claim to air superiority, which it had built around the induction of these advanced French warplanes. Some experts speculated that the confrontation served as a test of Chinese and Western military technologies, particularly after Pakistan acquired J-10C jets from China in response to India’s Rafale fleet.
A senior French intelligence official confirmed to CNN that one Rafale jet had indeed been shot down by Pakistan, marking the first time that this sophisticated French aircraft had been lost in combat.
In another development, the Pakistan armed forces confirmed the neutralization of 25 Israeli-made Harop drones used by India in recent cross-border activity.
A statement issued by Pakistan's Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) on Thursday confirmed that these drones were shot down using both electronic countermeasures (soft-kill techniques) and conventional weaponry (hard-kill systems) after they were detected flying over multiple areas across Pakistan.
The ISPR described the drone incursions as a "desperate and panicked response" by India, which came after Pakistan’s retaliatory operations on May 6 and 7, in which five Indian fighter jets were downed and several military posts were struck.
Unfazed by the Israeli-made armed drones, called "loitering munitions", sent by India over multiple cities of Pakistan, including Karachi, residents of the metropolitan city poured onto the streets in an extraordinary wave of solidarity with the armed forces.
The number of Indian drones downed by Pakistani armed forces had reached at least 77, security sources confirmed on Friday.
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