India relocates warships, Pakistan closes airspace

Pakistan and India are attacking each other with missiles. Pakistan's airspace has been closed.

According to the Pakistani military, Pakistan launched a counterattack against India early Saturday morning. The Pakistani military further stated that a missile depot in India was destroyed and an Indian air base was attacked. Another airfield was also disabled. At Platform X, government spokesman Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry criticized the previous Indian attacks. "Now wait for our response," he said in English and announced the start of the military operation "Bunyan un Marsoos" (Indestructible Wall).

According to the Pakistani army, India has attacked three air bases with missiles. These are the Pakistani bases in Nur Khan, Murid, and Shorkot, army spokesman Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry said on television on Saturday. He called it a "blatant aggression" and promised a "response" from his country. Nur Khan Air Base in Rawalpindi, home to the headquarters of the Pakistani army, is located about ten kilometers from the capital, Islamabad.

However, Pakistani air defenses intercepted most of the missiles. According to initial damage assessments, the missiles that did penetrate did not hit any air force installations, the spokesman added.

Pakistan subsequently closed its airspace. The closure is in effect from 3:15 a.m. (local time; 12:15 a.m. CEST) until 12 noon today, several media outlets reported, citing the Pakistani Civil Aviation Authority. According to Indian media, civil flight operations at 32 airports in northern and western India had previously been suspended by order of the authorities until next Wednesday.

On Friday, it was revealed that Indian warships equipped with supersonic cruise missiles have moved closer to Pakistan in recent days, according to the British newspaper "The Telegraph." An Indian source said that New Delhi had moved its Western fleet closer to the northern Arabian Sea, bringing it within striking distance of Karachi, Pakistan's largest port.

"We are vigilant and ready to counter any adversary threat. The movement of fighter aircraft and other naval assets is for surveillance and deterrence," the source told The Telegraph. The ships are in international waters. The force, consisting of an aircraft carrier, destroyers, frigates, and submarines, is located approximately 300 to 400 miles off the Pakistani coast.

In the newly reignited Kashmir conflict, India and Pakistan had previously continued their mutual attacks for the third consecutive day. According to the Indian Army, Pakistan launched drone strikes on the Indian part of Kashmir on Friday, bombing the city of Jammu, among other targets. Islamabad had previously accused New Delhi of promoting an escalation between the two nuclear-armed powers.

On Wednesday morning, the decades-old Kashmir conflict escalated militarily: India bombed several targets in Pakistan, and Islamabad responded with artillery fire. Since then, at least 50 people have been killed. The escalating situation has sparked international concern.

Late Friday evening, the countries of the seven leading Western democracies (G7) urged both India and Pakistan to exercise the greatest possible restraint. They called on the two countries to engage in direct dialogue and seek a peaceful solution amid the escalating hostilities.

The renewed conflict was triggered by an attack on Indian tourists in which 26 people were shot dead in the Indian part of Kashmir on April 22. India accuses Pakistan of supporting the attack, but the Pakistani government denies the allegations. This is the most serious confrontation in decades between the two neighboring countries, which have already fought two wars over the Himalayan region of Kashmir.