The latest round of shelling came hours after India launched Operation Sindoor, a high-precision military offensive that struck nine terror camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir.
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| Dinesh Kumar of 5 Fd Regt |
IT, New Delhi, May 8, 2025 : Pakistani troops resorted to cross-border shelling along the Line of Control (LoC) for the 14th consecutive day on Thursday, escalating to heavy artillery fire and mortar shelling on forward villages in Kupwara, Baramulla, Uri, and Akhnoor, officials said.
The Pakistani side targeted civilian areas in the Karnah area, firing shells and mortars after midnight, officials said. “There have been no reports of civilian casualties so far in the Karnah shelling,” they added.
The Indian Army responded with proportionate force, targeting Pakistani positions responsible for the provocation. Indian Army chief Gen Upendra Dwivedi has told formation commanders to take strong and punitive action against the Pakistan Army, which is using artillery guns to target Indian civilians along the LoC.
Meanwhile, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will review the situation and hold a meeting with the Chief of Defence Staff and three service chiefs at 11 am in New Delhi.
The fresh wave of hostilities comes in the immediate aftermath of India’s high-precision military offensive — Operation Sindoor — which struck nine terror camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (POK) early on Wednesday. The operation targeted infrastructure linked to Jaish-e-Mohammed, Lashkar-e-Taiba, and Hizbul Mujahideen.
In retaliation, Pakistan shelled civilian areas in the Karnah sector of Kupwara late on Wednesday night. Mortar shells and artillery rounds landed near residential zones shortly after midnight, forcing residents to flee to safer locations. Most of the civilian population in Karnah had already relocated following earlier shelling on Wednesday and one jawan, Dinesh Kumar of 5 Fd Regt, was killed.
However, earlier on Tuesday night, Pakistan’s indiscriminate shelling along both the LoC and International Border killed 15 Indian nationals and injured at least 43 in Poonch and Tangdhar regions. The worst-hit in the Pakistani shelling was Poonch district, which accounted for all the civilian deaths.
India Today TV, reporting from ground zero, captured the trail of destruction left by Pakistani shelling along the LoC and IB in Jammu and Kashmir. The visuals were stark, with houses razed to rubble, shattered glass littering the ground, and crumbling walls.
According to Defence sources, the Indian Army’s immediate retaliation in the Kupwara and Rajouri-Poonch sectors inflicted “significant damage” on Pakistani military installations, with reports indicating substantial enemy casualties.
