Kashmir on edge: Evacuation following India-Pakistan clash
The authorities of Indian-administered Kashmir have urged residents to evacuate "sensitive areas." The appeal was issued a few hours after India's attack on Pakistan.
What do you need to know?
- Evacuation in Kashmir: The Kashmir authorities ordered residents to leave "sensitive areas" following the attacks on Pakistan.
- Conflict casualties: As a result of Indian army attacks on Pakistan, 26 civilians were killed, and 46 were injured. On the Indian side, 10 were reported dead and 48 injured.
- Pakistan's reaction: Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the attacks and announced a firm response to the "act of war".
Evacuation call
The authorities of Indian-administered Kashmir ordered the evacuation of citizens from areas deemed dangerous. It was acknowledged that the conflict between New Delhi and Islamabad is escalating.
The Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir, Manoj Sinha, instructed districts to move village residents from "sensitive areas" to safer locations.
"Accommodation, food and medicines will be provided to the evacuated citizens," assured a statement from the Lieutenant Governor's office on platform X.
Tragic casualty toll
The spokesperson for the Pakistani army, Gen. Ahmed Chaudhry, stated on Wednesday that 26 civilians were killed and 46 were injured due to Indian army attacks on "six locations" in Pakistan.
On the Indian side, the army reported 10 killed and 48 injured in Pakistan's retaliatory attacks.
Pakistan announces retaliation
The Indian army reported attacking locations where there was "terrorist infrastructure," including "terrorist camps," recruiting centres, and rocket launchers. The Indian government stated that no Pakistani military installations were targeted, highlighting what it described as a demonstration of significant restraint. At the same time, intelligence indicated that additional attacks against India were in the planning stages.
According to Indian intelligence, the mosque attacked in Bahawalpur in Pakistan's Punjab is linked to the jihadist group of Pakistani militants Lashkar-e-Taiba. Delhi accuses this group of carrying out a terrorist attack on tourists on 22nd April in Pahalgam, Kashmir, killing 26 people.
Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif strongly condemned the attacks carried out on Wednesday and declared that Pakistan would issue a firm response, asserting that the country reserves the right to react decisively to what he described as an act of war.
