United States: The first drone war in the world between nuclear-armed neighbours has begun in South Asia.
On Thursday, Islamabad was accused by India of sending waves of drones and missiles into the three military bases of Indian territory and Indian administered Kashmir; an accusation swiftly denied by Islamabad.
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Pakistan claimed it had shot down 25 Indian drones in the past few hours. Delhi remained publicly silent.
Experts say this tit for tat phase of the war, this dangerous new chapter of the decades long rivalry has both sides shooting more than just artillery across a hot border line into each other’s territory using unmanned weapons.
As Washington and other world powers call for gaps in restraint, the region is poised at the brink of escalation as the drones – silent, remote, and deniable – are beginning a new chapter in the India-Pakistan conflict.
According to Jahara Matisek, a professor at the US Naval War College, “The Indo-Pak conflict is moving into a new drone era – one where ‘invisible eyes’ and unmanned precision may determine escalation or restraint. Thus, in South Asia’s contested skies, the side that masters drone warfare won’t just see the battlefield – they’ll shape it,” BBC News reported.
Pakistan states that, since Wednesday morning, Indian air strikes and cross-border fire have claimed the lives of 36 and wounded another 57 in Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir.
On the other side, India’s army reports at least 16 civilians dead from Pakistani shelling.
India insists its missile aggression was a retaliation for a deadly militant incident on Indian tourists in Pahalgam last month, an attack, which Islamabad claims no part in, the BBC reported.
Pakistan’s military said on Thursday it had shot down 25 Indian drones in different cities such as Karachi, Lahore, and Rawalpindi.
The UAVs – reported to be Israeli-made Harop drones – were reported to have been intercepted using technical and weapon-based countermeasures.
India said it had neutralized many Pakistani air defence radars and systems, including one from Lahore, whose claim was denied by Islamabad.
