Pakistan claimed Thursday its air force shot down multiple Indian aircraft, including Rafale jet fighter jets, following Indian airstrikes earlier this week that Pakistan said killed dozens of civilians. The claim came as tensions between the nuclear-armed neighbors escalated significantly.
Pakistani officials stated their forces shot down five Indian planes and at least one drone. The aircraft types cited included three Rafale fighter jets, one MIG-29 fighter aircraft, and one Su-30 fighter jet. Pakistan also claimed downing a Heron drone.
India acknowledged that some of its downed aircraft had gone down, but Indian officials, Western diplomats, and local media reports indicated only two or three aircraft crashed inside India’s border, without specifying types.
India said its strikes on Wednesday were in retaliation for a terrorist attack in Kashmir on April 22 that killed 26 people. India blamed Pakistan-backed militants for the attack, an accusation Islamabad has denied.
India stated its strikes targeted at least nine sites in Pakistan linked to planning terrorist attacks against India. However, Pakistani officials asserted the Indian strikes hit civilian areas in Punjab province and Pakistan-controlled Kashmir, resulting in 31 deaths, including women and children.
Separately on Thursday, Pakistan’s air defense system shot down an Indian drone near a naval base in the eastern city of Lahore. Local police official Mohammad Rizwan confirmed a drone was downed near Waltan airport, which houses military installations. Local media reported two additional drones were shot down in other Punjab province cities.
Following the Indian strikes and the reported downing of aircraft, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif vowed revenge, raising concerns about further conflict between the two countries.
Amidst the heightened military activity, Indian authorities evacuated civilians from dozens of villages near the highly militarized Line of Control in Indian-controlled Kashmir. Some residents also reportedly left border towns on their own.
