The Pakistan Army continued shelling for a second day on Thursday, May 8, with Pakistani forces targeting forward villages along the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir.
At least 13 people, including four children and a soldier, were killed and 57 others injured as the Pakistan Army carried out artillery and mortar shelling targeting civilian areas on May 7. The attack came in the wake of India’s missile strikes against terror infrastructure located in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), as part of a military operation named ‘Operation Sindoor’, officials said.
“During the night of May 7-8, 2025, Pakistan Army posts resorted to unprovoked fire using Small Arms and Artillery Guns across the LoC in areas opposite Kupwara, Baramulla, Uri and Akhnoor areas in J&K. Indian Army responded proportionately,” read a statement from the Indian Army.
In Karnah, residents began evacuating to safer areas after the cross-border attacks resumed shortly after midnight, according to local officials.
In response to the rising tensions, Indian defence officials said that air defence units have been fully activated across the India-Pakistan border to prepare for any eventuality.
The Indian armed forces stated that they responded “effectively” to the unprovoked Pakistani shelling.
Pakistan, meanwhile, claimed that 31 people were killed and 46 injured in the Indian strikes on terror facilities, a toll reported by news agency Reuters citing a statement from the Pakistan Army.
As a precautionary measure, the Indian government ordered the closure of 21 airports in northern and north-western parts of the country for passenger flights until May 10. The list includes key civilian and defence airfields such as Srinagar, Jammu, Leh, Amritsar, Pathankot, Chandigarh, Jaisalmer, and Jodhpur. Some airbases without current civil flight operations were also closed as part of the nationwide alert.
In Kashmir, centralised control rooms have been set up in all 10 districts to monitor the security situation and facilitate a coordinated emergency response. “In view of the prevailing situation, a Joint Control Room is established at the District Emergency Operation Centre (DEOC), Office of the Deputy Commissioner, Srinagar under the overall supervision of the District Disaster Management Authority (DDMA), Srinagar,” read an official order.
Amid the escalating hostilities, US President Donald Trump urged both India and Pakistan to cease attacking each other and offered to mediate between the two countries. “It’s so terrible. My position is that I get along with both. I know both very well, and I want to see them work it out. I want to see them stop. And hopefully they can stop now, they’ve gone tit for tat. So hopefully, they can stop now. But I know both, we get along with both countries very well, good relationships with both, and I want to see it stop. And if I can do anything to help, I will be there,” Trump told reporters at the White House.