Pakistan Vows Retaliation After Indian 'Operation Sindoor' Strikes Cause Casualties Following Pahalgam Incident

Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has declared that his country is responding to what he described as an 'act of war' following Indian missile strikes on Pakistani territory. Sharif stated that Pakistan has every right to give a 'forceful response' to the attacks, which he claimed were carried out on five locations within Pakistan, including Kotli, Muzaffarabad in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, and Bahawalpur in Punjab province. The strikes also targeted the Subhanullah mosque in Bahawalpur's Ahmed East area, Muridke, and Bagh in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. The Indian strikes, labeled Operation Sindoor, targeted nine sites of 'terrorist infrastructure' in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir, according to the Indian Defense Ministry. The ministry emphasized that the actions were 'focused, measured and non-escalatory,' and no Pakistani military facilities were targeted. Casualties were reported by the Pakistani military, with three people killed and 12 injured in the missile strikes. Pakistan's Defense Minister Khawaja Asif vowed a strong retaliation, stating that Pakistan would respond 'with full force' at a time and place of its choosing. Additionally, Pakistan reported that two Indian jets were downed during the conflict. The escalation follows a deadly attack in the disputed Kashmir region on April 22, known as the Pahalgam incident, which left 26 people dead in Indian-held Kashmir. India has blamed Pakistan for the attack, leading to heightened tensions and punitive measures against Pakistan, including airspace closure and the suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty.