Islamabad, May 7, 2025 — In a high-stakes escalation of regional tensions, Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has issued a stern and emotionally charged warning following Indian missile strikes on multiple locations inside Pakistan-administered regions, including Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) and Punjab province.

In his first public reaction, PM Shehbaz Sharif declared, "Pakistan has every right to respond forcefully to this act of war imposed by India, and a forceful response is being given." The Prime Minister emphasized that the entire nation stands united with the Pakistani armed forces, asserting the morale of the people is high and that Pakistan knows how to deal with its enemies. He vowed, “We will never allow the enemy to succeed in their nefarious goals.”

This statement came hours after India reportedly launched precision strikes on at least nine locations, targeting what Indian sources claimed were terrorist infrastructure and camps. The strikes were conducted in Kotli, Muzaffarabad, and Bagh in PoK, and Bahawalpur and Muridke in Punjab province. According to the Pakistan Army, three civilians were killed and twelve others injured in the missile attacks.

Defence Minister Khawaja Asif further reinforced Sharif's stance, warning that Pakistan's response would be swift and decisive. Speaking to Geo News, Asif stated, “We will respond with full force. We will pay off this debt in the manner such debt is paid.” He also noted that Pakistan’s retaliation would be both kinetic and diplomatic, signaling that a multifaceted countermeasure was already in the works. Asif underscored that it wouldn’t take long before Pakistan delivered its answer to the strikes.

Asif also opened the door for international scrutiny, saying, “All places are open for the international media to verify if they targeted terrorists’ camps or civilians.” This challenge directly contests India's narrative and seeks to draw global attention to the on-ground impact of the attacks.

Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, the official spokesperson for the Pakistan Army, confirmed that missiles launched by India struck Kotli and Muzaffarabad in PoK, as well as Bahawalpur in the eastern Punjab province. He confirmed the casualty count at three dead and twelve injured, without specifying if the victims were civilians or associated with any armed groups. Chaudhry also said, “All of our air force jets are airborne. They were never allowed to come and intrude into the space of Pakistan,” hinting that while Indian missiles struck ground targets, no aerial dogfights or intrusions occurred.

While the Indian government has not officially acknowledged the strikes, senior Indian defence officials have maintained that the action was a "surgical response" to recent terrorist incidents, believed to be backed by groups operating out of PoK. The targets were reportedly chosen based on specific intelligence pointing to terrorist training camps and launch pads being active in the aforementioned regions.

The Indian action appears to have been preemptive and targeted, possibly aiming to prevent cross-border infiltration amid rising militancy in Jammu & Kashmir. However, Pakistan views the strike as a blatant violation of its sovereignty, raising the stakes for potential retaliation and triggering a fresh wave of military and diplomatic tensions.

International observers and analysts are now closely monitoring both nations for any further escalation, particularly after PM Sharif’s and Khawaja Asif’s strong-worded warnings. Any retaliatory move from Pakistan could potentially ignite a larger military standoff between the two nuclear-armed neighbors.

India and Pakistan have had a long-standing, volatile relationship over the Kashmir issue, and past escalations — including the 2016 Uri surgical strikes and the 2019 Balakot airstrike — have led to intense military engagements and aerial confrontations. In the current instance, both countries seem to be preparing for a sustained conflict, at least on the diplomatic and strategic fronts, if not on the battlefield.

The global community, including the United Nations, the United States, and other major diplomatic powers, is likely to urge both countries to exercise restraint. The question now remains: will this tit-for-tat spiral into a larger crisis, or will diplomacy once again manage to rein in the worst impulses on both sides?

This incident underscores once more the fragility of peace in the South Asian region, and the critical need for backchannel diplomacy, de-escalation mechanisms, and regional cooperation to combat terrorism without risking full-blown military conflict.

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