Islamabad: Pakistan's Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif has accused India of launching missile attacks on five locations in Pakistan, describing the actions as "cowardly" and calling India a "deceitful enemy." He emphasized that Pakistan has the full right to respond to this aggression and assured that a robust response is already underway.
Prime Minister Sharif stated that the entire nation stands united with the Pakistan Armed Forces, maintaining high morale and unwavering resolve. He affirmed that the Pakistani people and military are fully capable of defending the country and confronting any aggression.
"We will never allow the enemy to succeed in its malicious objectives," Prime Minister Sharif declared.
Pakistan’s Defense Minister Khawaja Asif accused India of specifically targeting civilian areas in its missile strikes. He warned that Pakistan would respond more forcefully to these provocations.
"India has targeted civilian areas and even mosques," Asif stated in an interview with Geo News. "We will retaliate against India on both military and diplomatic fronts."
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Islamabad has informed the United Nations Security Council about what it described as "India’s blatant aggression," highlighting the potential threats to international peace and security. According to the ministry, Pakistan reserves the right to respond at a time and place of its choosing, in line with Article 51 of the UN Charter.
Pakistan’s Information Minister Attaullah Tarar echoed these concerns, accusing India of targeting civilian populations rather than militant camps. He stated that Pakistan retains the right to self-defense.
"These are civilian areas. There are no terrorist camps there," Tarar said in a late night interview with Sky News. "We are responding to Indian aggression, but operational details cannot be disclosed. According to my information, two Indian aircraft have been shot down."
Tarar emphasized that Pakistan had previously offered to participate in a neutral investigation into the Pahalgam attack but rejected India’s decision to target innocent civilians in response.
Meanwhile, Pakistan People's Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari strongly condemned India’s actions, describing them as a "cowardly attack on Pakistani territory and civilian targets." He emphasized that the country’s armed forces, particularly the Air Force, were responding with full determination.
"Any adventurism will be met with a fitting response. Pakistan stands united, and India’s cowardly and unprovoked attacks on civilian areas in Muridke, Bahawalpur, Kotli, and Muzaffarabad constitute an act of war," Bhutto Zardari stated.
He further added that targeting innocent women and children is an act of barbarism, not strength, and that Pakistan’s armed forces, supported by an unyielding nation, would decisively respond to Indian aggression.
India, on the other hand, has claimed that it targeted "terrorist hideouts" in Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir at nine locations. However, Pakistani officials have only confirmed missile strikes in Muzaffarabad, Kotli, Bagh, Muridke, and Bahawalpur.
The situation remains highly tense, with both sides exchanging accusations and threats, while diplomatic efforts to de-escalate the conflict are yet to yield any results.
