New Delhi: At least 15 civilians have been killed in cross-border shelling by the Pakistan army across the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir’s Poonch and Tangdhar, official sources in the Indian Army said. At least 43 people have been injured.
Officials in Poonch said that the district administration rushed to the villages, where shelling was reported and civilians were evacuated to safer places.
One person had died immediately from the shelling, while others lost their lives at the Poonch hospital. Two minors, aged 12 and 10 years, have also fallen victim to the shelling.
The shelling was carried out by the Pakistan army less than an hour after the Indian armed forces launched Operation Sindoor, targeting nine sites in Pakistan, including Muridke and Bahawalpur in Punjab province, and others in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
Officials said that they were first informed of the injuries and possible casualties around 2.30 am, and all possible measures were taken to prevent further injuries and deaths.
“During the night of 06-07 May 2025, Pakistan army resorted to arbitrary firing, including artillery shelling from posts across the Line of Control and IB opposite J&K,” a source in the Army said.
Additionally, sources said that the Army responded in a “proportionate manner” to the unprovoked firing from Pakistan, with reports of shelling in Krishna Ghati, Shahpur, and Mankote in Poonch, as well as Laam, Manjakote, and Gambhir Brahmana in Rajouri district.
Sources in the defence and security establishment said that a Pakistani artillery shell had landed just outside the gate of the United Nations Field Station in Poonch, narrowly missing the facility. “There appears to be an attempt to target civilian and even UN-linked sites, but the strikes are off-mark,” one official said.
Media reports indicate that multiple structures were hit in Poonch, with windows shattered and smoke rising from several locations, while residents described spending over an hour huddled in basements as shelling intensified.
Hundreds were seen fleeing the frontier region on foot, in cars, and by any means available, while women, children and men moved in groups along both sides of the road.
Meanwhile, the official X account of J&K Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha posted: “I’ve also directed the DCs for shifting of villagers from vulnerable areas to safer locations and ensuring boarding, lodging, food, medicare and transportation. We will ensure safety of every citizen. Jai Hind!”
The Indian Army has maintained that Pakistan army has resorted to unprovoked small arms fire across the LoC in areas opposite Kupwara, Baramulla, Poonch, Rajauri, Mendhar, Naushera, Sunderbani, and Akhnoor in Jammu and Kashmir over the past two weeks since the Pahalgam terror attack, in which at least 26 were killed.
On X, the Indian Army posted early Wednesday that Pakistan had again violated ceasefire by firing artillery in Bhimber Gali in Poonch-Rajouri area, adding that the Army is responding appropriately in a calibrated manner.
The Ministry of Defence maintained in its statement that Wednesday’s pre-dawn operation was carefully calibrated. “Our actions have been focused, measured and non-escalatory in nature. No Pakistani military facilities have been targeted. India has demonstrated considerable restraint in the selection of targets and method of execution,” it said.
This is an updated version of the report.
(Edited by Mannat Chugh)