Pakistan attempts late last night and early this morning to escalate tension with India by targeting military installations in 15 cities in the northern and western parts of the country - including Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, and Gujarat - have been negated, the government said on Thursday. India used HAROP drones to destroy Pakistani air defences, while the Russian-made S-400 'Sudarshan Chakra' defence system was used to shoot down Pakistani missiles aimed at Indian cities.
Pakistani Offensive Attempt (Night of 07–08 May 2025)
Pakistan launched drones and missiles targeting 15 Indian military locations in Northern and Western India.
Targeted areas included: Awantipura, Srinagar, Jammu, Pathankot, Amritsar, Kapurthala, Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Adampur, Bhatinda, Chandigarh, Nal, Phalodi, Uttarlai, and Bhuj.
These threats were successfully neutralised by Indian Air Force S-400 Sudarshan Chakra air defence missile systems.
2. Indian Retaliation (Morning of 08 May 2025):
India responded by targeting Air Defence Radars and systems in multiple locations inside Pakistan. A key Air Defence system in Lahore was neutralised.
3. Strategic Strike Details:
India's retaliation involved the use of Israeli-made 'HAROP': Drone
Pakistani HQ-9 missile defence systems (Chinese origin) were hit and effectively destroyed. The HQ-9 is a long-range surface-to-air missile system of Chinese origin and is regarded as a crucial component of Pakistan’s multi-layered air defence network.
This strike has crippled Pakistan’s air defence capabilities in Lahore.
Operation Sindoor
The retaliation followed Operation Sindoor, an Indian military operation against terror camps in Pakistan.
Operation Sindoor was conducted in response to the Pahalgam terror attack, which killed 26 civilians.
The Resistance Front (TRF), a shadow group of Pakistan’s Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) had claimed responsibility for the killings.
The strikes were on facilities in Muzaffarabad, Kotli, Sialkot, Barnala and Bahawalpur that were instrumental in the infiltration of Lashkar, Hizbul and JeM terrorists into India.