Pakistan targeted 36 Indian locations with 300-400 drones; used civilian aircraft as shield: India

The Pakistan military carried out drone and missile attacks at 36 locations in India with about 300-400 drones, and used civilian aircraft as a shield to protect its territory in the intervening night of May 8 and 9, the Indian armed forces said Friday.

Addressing a press briefing on Operation Sindoor, Colonel Sofiya Qureshi said the swarm of drones targeting Indian locations from Leh to Sir Creek were brought down by the Indian Armed Forces. She added that Pakistan seemed to be testing India’s aerial defence systems and gathering intelligence by deploying such a large-scale drone intrusion.

Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri and Wing Commander Vyomika Singh also addressed the media.

Additionally, later last night, an armed UAV of Pakistan attempted to target Bhatinda military station, which was detected and neutralised. “In response to the Pakistani attacks, armed drones were launched at four air defence sites in Pakistan. One of the drones was able to destroy an air defence system,” said Wing Commander Singh.

“Pakistan’s irresponsible behaviour again came to the fore as it failed to close its civil airspace despite it launching a failed, unprovoked drone and missile attack on May 7 at 8:30 PM,” she said, adding, “Pakistan is using civil airliners as a shield, knowing fully well that its attack on India would elicit a swift air defence response. This is not safe for the unsuspecting civil airliners, including international flights, which were flying over the international border between India and Pakistan.”

Giving more details, Colonel Qureshi showed a screenshot of the data of the Flight Radar 24 application, which clearly showed, in the midst of a high air defence alert situation in the Punjab sector, that while the Indian airspace was devoid of any civilian air traffic, there were civilian flights flying between Karachi and Lahore. "Among the other flights highlighted in the sector, we have highlighted an Airbus A320 aircraft of FlyNas Aviation, which originated from Dammam at 5:30 PM and landed at Lahore at nine o'clock at night. The Indian Air Force demonstrated considerable restraint in its response, thus ensuring the safety of international civil carriers,” Wing Commander Singh said.

'New low even for Pakistan'

Misri slammed Pakistan for targeting religious places in India. "Pakistan is targeting and shelling places of worship with a particular design, including gurdwaras, churches, and temples. This is a new low even for Pakistan," the foreign secretary said as he informed that two students at the Christ School in Poonch were killed in Pakistan shelling across the LoC in the early morning of May 7. "...a shell fired from Pakistan landed just behind the Christ School in Poonch. The shell hit the home of two students at the school, who unfortunately lost their lives, and their parents sustained injuries... Several school staff and locals took refuge in an underground hall of the school during the shelling by Pakistan. The school was fortunately closed, otherwise more losses would have occurred," he added. 

He also added that the Kartarpur Sahib Corridor services have been suspended indefinitely due to the current escalation of the India-Pakistan conflict.