What happened?
In a briefing on Thursday, Pakistani army spokesman Lieutenant Genera Ahmad Sharif Chaudhry said the country came under attack from a wave of drones overnight, targeting many of the most populated cities, including Karachi and Lahore.
Pakistan’s air defence system intercepted and brought down these drones, he said. Pakistan’s military said 25 such drones were jammed and shot out of the sky.
The falling debris killed one civilian and injured another person in the southern Sindh province, while an additional drone targeted and wounded four soldiers in a military installation in Lahore, Chaudhry said in the news briefing. Partial damage to “military equipment” was recorded in that latter incident.
Chaudhry described the drone attacks as an act of “naked aggression” and a “serious provocation”, and pledged that Pakistan was ready to retaliate.
“It appears that India has apparently lost the plot and, rather than going on a path of rationality, is further escalating in a highly charged environment. Pakistan Armed Forces remain fully vigilant to any type of threat,” he said.
What has India said?
Hours after the drone attacks, India accepted responsibility – but insisted it had been provoked.
On the night of May 7-8, India’s Ministry of Defence said, Pakistani forces attempted to “engage a number of military targets” in multiple areas in northern and western India and Indian-administered Kashmir using “drones and missiles”. These were shot down by India’s air defence systems, the ministry said.
“Today morning Indian Armed Forces targeted Air Defence Radars and systems at a number of locations in Pakistan. Indian response has been in the same domain with same intensity as Pakistan,” the ministry’s statement said. “It has been reliably learnt that an Air Defence system at Lahore has been neutralised.”
Pakistan has not commented on Indian claims that it attempted to strike India with drones and missiles.
Where were the drones in Pakistan brought down?
In his briefing, Pakistan army spokesperson Chaudhry said drones either attacked or were shot down in the following locations:
Lahore: The capital of the eastern Punjab region, and Pakistan’s second-largest city of 14 million people. Local police official Mohammad Rizwan told reporters a drone was downed near Walton Airport, an airfield that the Pakistani military manages and uses for radars. The airport also has training schools.
Gujranwala: The fourth-largest city in Punjab, with a population of 2.5 million people.
Chakwal: Also in the Punjab region, with a population of about 1.5 million.
Rawalpindi: The city in Punjab is home to the headquarters of Pakistan’s powerful military. The city has a population of close to 6 million people.
Attock: Close to the capital, Islamabad, Attock is a cantonment city with a population of 2.1 million.
Nankana Sahib: The Punjab city has a population of just more than 100,000 but enjoys far greater significance than that number suggests: It was the birthplace of Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhism, and is one of the holiest sites of the faith.
Bahawalpur: Also in Punjab, it has a population of nearly one million.
Miano: A town in Sindh province, housing a major oil field.
Chor: A small town in the Umerkot district of the southeastern province of Sindh.
Ghotki: A city in northern Sindh known for its date palms, with a population of about 120,000.
Karachi: Pakistan’s most populous city of 20 million people is based in Sindh.
Which cities did India claim Pakistan was targeting?
India said Pakistani missiles and drones attempted to strike 15 cities and towns but that all were brought down.
Awantipora: A town of 12,000 people, on the Jhelum River in Indian-administered Kashmir.
Srinagar: The biggest city in the Kashmir valley, Srinagar has a population of 1.2 million people.
Jammu: The winter capital of Indian-administered Kashmir, it has a population of 500,000 people.
Pathankot: Also in Indian-administered Kashmir, Pathankot is a major nerve centre of the Indian army’s operations. It is home to the largest military base in Asia.
Amritsar: The city in India’s Punjab state has a population of 1.1 million and is home to the Golden Temple, one of Sikhism’s holiest shrines.
Kapurthala: A smaller town of 100,000 people in Indian Punjab.
Jalandhar: Right next to Kapurthala, Jalandhar has a population of nearly 900,000.
Ludhiana: The most populous city in Indian Punjab is home to 1.6 million people.
Adampur: The Punjab town is tiny, with just 20,000 people. But it is home to India’s second-largest air force base.
Bhatinda: The city in Indian Punjab has a population of nearly 300,000.
Chandigarh: The capital of both Indian Punjab and the neighbouring state of Haryana, Chandigarh has a population of just more than one million.
Nal: A tiny town near the India-Pakistan border in the desert state of Rajasthan, it is home to a civilian airport and an air force base.
Phalodi: A city of 66,000 people in Rajasthan, Phalodi is famous for its salt industry.
Uttarlai: A small village in Rajasthan that is home to an air force station.
Bhuj: A city of 190,000 people, Bhuj is in Gujarat, the western state of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
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