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ConflictsAsia

Pakistan says over 50 killed in last week's India clashes

Wesley Rahn with AP, Reuters, AFP
May 13, 2025

Pakistan has upped its death toll following Indian strikes last week. After the worst fighting in decades, a ceasefire appears to be holding.

Imams and officials stand above caskets draped in Pakistani flags
A funeral last week near Lahore after India launched missile strikesImage: Arif Ali/AFP

Pakistan's military said in a statement on Tuesday that 51 people were killed by Indian strikes last week, with the victims comprising 40 civilians and 11 armed forces members.

Pakistan's previous official death toll had been 33 civilians with no military losses.

Last week, India launched strikes targeting "terrorist infrastructure" sites in Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir in response to an attack on Hindu tourists in April in India-administered Kashmir that killed 26.

The nuclear-armed arch-rivals then launched days of tit-for-tat missile and drone strikes into each other's territories, before a US-brokered ceasefire was worked out over the weekend. India said at least five military personnel and 16 civilians died in the clashes.

India and Pakistan exchange cross-border strikes

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Ceasefire appears to hold

Despite claims from both sides on early violations, the ceasefire still appeared to be largely holding on Tuesday.

Senior military officials from India and Pakistan spoke via a hotline on Monday to assess if the ceasefire was holding and how to ensure implementation, the Associated Press reported.

The Indian army in a statement said the officials discussed the commitment of not "firing a single shot" or initiating aggressive action.

In his first public response since the ceasefire, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that India has only "paused" its military action, and warned of retaliation if there were any further terror attacks on India.

"If Pakistan wants to survive, it will have to destroy its terror infrastructure," Modi said Monday.

On Tuesday, Pakistan's Foreign Ministry said the country "remains committed" to the ceasefire.

On Monday, India's Air Chief Marshal AK Bharti said that its forces were "ready to undertake any further missions, should the need so arise."

Bharti added that India's fight was "with terrorists, and not with Pakistan's military or its civilians."

On Tuesday, India's military in a statement said three suspected militants were killed in a gunfight with Indian forces in India-administered Kashmir.

The April attack was claimed by a group calling itself the Kashmir Resistance, which India says is also known as The Resistance Front and is linked to Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), a UN-designated terrorist organization.

New Delhi blamed Islamabad for backing the attack, an allegation Pakistan denies. Both India and Pakistan claim Kashmir in full, but administer respective sections of the territory, making it a flashpoint for larger tensions.

The Kashmir attack and its aftermath have sparked the worst round of fighting between India and Pakistan since 1999. US President Donald Trump took some credit for the ceasefire, saying Washington's intervention stopped a "bad nuclear war."

Kashmir residents feel unsafe despite India-Pakistan truce

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Edited by: Louis Oelofse

Wesley Rahn Editor and reporter focusing on geopolitics and current affairs
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