Drones, Rafales, JF-17s, and scathing rebukes — India and Pakistan, both nuclear-armed states, witnessed one of their biggest escalations last week. While the neighbours are not new to conflict, this time, the breakdown in their relations was different, given the frequency and intensity of the aggression.

It began with the horrific killing of 26 tourists at a hill station in the Indian-occupied Kashmir. India blamed Pakistan for the attack, an accusation the latter denies. Islamabad has since called for an international independent probe into the massacre.

However, on the night of May 6-7, New Delhi took things a step forward and launched a series of air strikes on Pakistan, resulting in civilian casualties. Both sides then exchanged missiles, which stretched over the week. It took American intervention for both sides to finally drop their guns.

On Saturday, when tensions between the two countries peaked, US President Donald Trump announced that a ceasefire had been reached between India and Pakistan.

However, as a Dawn editorial puts it, “While foreign friends can certainly help create a conducive atmosphere, it is Islamabad and New Delhi that will have to do the heavy lifting themselves to secure peace.”

Here’s a timeline of how the latest conflict unfolded:

April 22: Gunmen shot and killed at least 26 tourists at Pahalgam resort in Indian-held Kashmir. At least 17 others are wounded. A group called Kashmir Resistance, which India accuses Pakistan of backing, claims the attack.

April 23: Pakistan’s foreign office released a statement expressing concern at the loss of tourists’ lives in the attack.

In swift measures taken following the attack, India suspended the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) with Pakistan with immediate effect. The Attari border check post was closed, and Pakistanis in India under the Saarc Visa Exemption Scheme (SVES) had 48 hours to leave the country, while others could return by May 1. Defence personnel at the Pakistani High Commission in India were declared persona non grata and given a week to leave the country. The staff at the high commissions were also to be reduced.

Meanwhile, students from occupied Kashmir reported harassment and intimidation in other cities.

April 24: In its response, Pakistan called any attempt to stop or divert the flow of water per the IWT an “act of war”. In a slew of decisions, Islamabad suspended trade and closed the airspace with India. It also announced the closure of the Wagah border. Those who had crossed the border were ordered to return by April 30. All visas under the SVES issued to Indian nationals were cancelled with immediate effect, with the exception of Sikh religious pilgrims. Indian nationals in Pakistan at the time under SVES were instructed to exit within 48 hours.

Moreover, Pakistan also declared the Indian defence, naval and air advisers in Islamabad as persona non grata. They were directed to leave the country immediately, but not later than April 30, 2025. These posts in the Indian High Commission were deemed annulled. The support staff of these advisers were also directed to return to India. The strength of the Indian High Commission in Islamabad was to be reduced to 30 diplomats and staff members, with effect from April 30, 2025.

Meanwhile, the Indian Foreign Ministry announced that all Pakistani citizens in India must leave the country by April 29. India closed down the main border transit point and summoned Saad Ahmad Warraich, the top Pakistani diplomat in New Delhi. The Modi-led regime also blocked the Pakistani government’s X account in the country.

April 25: Indian and Pakistani troops exchanged fire overnight across the Line of Control (LoC) in Kashmir. Syed Ashfaq Gilani, a government official in Azad Kashmir, told AFP that there was no firing on the civilian population.

April 26: “Pakistan is open to participating in any neutral, transparent, and credible investigation (into the Pahalgam attack),” Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said.

He also drew a hard line on the issue of water resources, stressing continued water flow under the Indus Waters Treaty as a red line. “Water is a vital national interest of Pakistan, our lifeline,” he said. “Any attempt to stop, reduce, or divert the flow of water belonging to Pakistan under the Indus River Treaty would be responded to with full force and might.”

April 28: Pakistan and India continued trading fire across the Line of Control, with each blaming the other for provocation. On the other hand, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said Pakistan was ready for any incursion by India.

He added that Pakistan was on high alert and that it would only use its arsenal of nuclear weapons if “there is a direct threat to our existence”.

Separately, the Indian government banned 16 Pakistani YouTube channels on recommendations from its Ministry of Home Affairs

April 29: Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said Pakistan had “credible intelligence” reports that indicated India was planning to conduct military action against Pakistan in the next 24 to 36 hours.

In a Senate session the same day, Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said Pakistan would not strike India but reserved the right to retaliate.

In India, Prime Minister Nar­endra Modi gave his military “operational freedom” to respond to the Pahalgam attack.

April 30: According to Associated Press of Pakistan, Pakistani security forces delivered a robust response to India’s unprovoked ceasefire violation along the LoC, destroying an Indian checkpost after late-night aggression on April 29-30.

Sources told APP that the retaliatory strikes destroyed several bunkers, including the Chakputra post in India-held Kashmir. Separately, state media also reported that a “timely and swift response” by the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) had forced four Indian Rafale jets to retreat.

Pakistan also briefly closed the airspace over Gilgit-Baltistan, while India shut its airspace for all Pakistan-registered aircraft, or those owned and operated by Pakistani airlines or operators, including military craft.

May 1: Army chief General Asim Munir warned that any “misadventure” by India would be met with a quick and decisive response.

“Let there be no ambiguity: any military misadventure by India will be met with a swift, resolute, and notch-up response. While Pakistan remains committed to regional peace, our preparedness and resolve to safeguard national interests are absolute,” he was quoted as saying by the Inter-Services Public Relations.

The same day, authorities stopped tourists from entering Neelum Valley and other sensitive areas near the LoC in view of the security situation. All religious seminaries in the region were also ordered to remain closed for 10 days, while the owners of hotels, guesthouses, restaurants, and marriage halls have pledged to place their establishments at the military’s disposal in case India launches an attack.

Pakistan also announced that certain sections of airspace over the two largest cities — Karachi and Lahore — would remain closed for eight hours a day throughout the month of May.

May 2: The Indian government blocked access to the official YouTube channel of Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif for users in India. It said the move was part of a wider crackdown on Pakistani digital content.

Separately, India also asked global multilateral agencies, including the IMF, to review funds and loans provided to Pakistan, as New Delhi sought “to corner the neighbouring state diplomatically”.

May 3: Pakistan conducted a successful training launch of the Abdali Weapon System, a surface-to-surface missile with a range of 450 kilometres.

The missiles were not fired toward the border area with India; they were normally fired into the Arabian Sea or the deserts of the southwest Balochistan province, the Associated Press reported.

AP added that India suspended the exchange of all mail from Pakistan through air and surface routes and banned the direct and indirect import of goods from the neighbour. It also barred Pakistani-flagged ships from entering its ports and prohibited Indian-flagged vessels from visiting Pakistani ports.

May 6-7: India launched Operation Sindoor, carrying out late-night missile strikes at six Pakistani sites, including Subhan Mosque in Bahawalpur’s Ahmedpur East, Bilal Mosque in Muzaffarabad, Abbas Mosque in Kotli, Umalkura Mosque in Muridke, the village of Kotki Lohara in Sialkot district, and Shakargarh. The Neelum-Jhelum Hydropower Project was shelled by Indian forces as well.

Pakistan took down five Indian jets, including three Rafale planes. Eight civilian deaths, 35 injured people and one missing person were reported.

Subsequently, the National Security Committee authorised the country’s armed forces to respond to Indian aggression at “time and manner” of their choosing, while unprovoked firing and ceasefire violations by Indian forces continued at the Line of Control.

Meanwhile, 21 airports were shut in northern and north-western parts of India until May 10.

May 8: DG ISPR said Indian drones were neutralised in the following locations: Lahore, Attock, Gujranwala, Chakwal, Rawalpindi, Bahawalpur, Miano, Chhor, and near Karachi. Four army men were injured in this “serious serious provocation” by India, according to the military spokesperson. Around 30 drones were neutralised by Pakistan.

India’s government, on the other hand, claimed that 13 civilians were killed by Pakistani fire in “ceasefire violations” along their de facto border after violence escalated into artillery shelling following Indian strikes.

The UN renewed its call for “maximum restraint”. Countries from all over the world began talks with leadership from both countries and expressed “deep concern” over the issue, while encouraging both countries to exercise restraint. Flight operations at Karachi, Islamabad, Sialkot and Lahore airports were suspended. In Delhi, 90 flights were cancelled.

May 9: DG ISPR said Pakistan neutralised 77 Israeli drones sent by India. “We are taking each one of them out. Not one of them has been able to go back to India, and not one of them will be able to go back,” he said in a press conference.

He further stated that “if you are so fond of Pakistan firing at you, we will fulfil your demand at a time, place and means of our choosing”. He added that 33 people were slain and 76 injured in Indian attacks.

On the other hand, Pakistan postponed eight remaining matches of the Pakistan Super League X, while the Indian Premier League 2025 was suspended for a week.

May 10: India targeted the PAF’s Nur Khan (Chaklala, Rawalpindi), Murid (Chakwal) and Rafiqui (Shorkot in Jhang district) air bases, but the majority of them were intercepted by Pakistan’s air defence systems. Soon after, the Pakistan Airports Authority announced the closure of the country’s airspace till noon.

In the wee hours of the day, Operation Bunyan-um-Marsoos was launched by Pakistan. In its response to Indian aggression, the military destroyed a storage site of the Brahmos missiles in India’s Beas region and the Udhampur airbase in India-occupied Kashmir as part of its retaliatory operation. According to Pakistani state media and security sources, Pakistan hit the following:

• India’s power grid
• Indian military intelligence’s training centre in IOK’s Rajouri
• KG Top Brigade Headquarters
• Uri field supply depot
• Adampur, Udhampur, Pathankot, Suratgarh, Sirsa, Bhatinda and Halwara airfields, as well as the Akhnoor aviation base
• S-400 system in Adampur,
• Brahmos storage site in Beas
• Artillery gun positions in Dehrangyari, occupied Kashmir’s Mankot
• Indian posts directly opposite in the Phuklian sector
• Rabtanwali Post, Jazeera Post Complex, Kafir Mehri, Shahpar 3, and Ghadar Top across the LoC

Amid the attacks from both ends, talks continued in the back-end. At around 5pm, US President Donald Trump announced that both India and Pakistan agreed to a full and immediate ceasefire. The same was also confirmed by both the neighbours.

Air traffic across Pakistan resumed later that night.

May 11: In a press conference, DG ISPR Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry paid tribute to those who were martyred in Indian aggression and their families, while praying for the speedy recovery of the wounded.

He confirmed that Pakistan hit 26 Indian targets, including their air force and aviation bases at Suratgarh, Sirsa, Adampur, Bhooj, Nalia, Bathinda, Barnala, Halwara, Avantipura, Srinagar, Jammu, Mamoon, Ambala, Udampur and Pathankot — all of which sustained major damage. He further added that the Barhmos facilities, which had fired missiles in Pakistan and killed innocent civilians, were also destroyed.

He added that Pakistan “never requested a ceasefire” and emphasises that the issue of Kashmir remains central to the dispute between Pakistan and India. The military spokesperson further confirmed that there was no ceasefire violation from Pakistan’s side but vowed to respond “if there is any aggression.”

PM Shehbaz Sharif announced Youm-i-Tashakur to mark Pakistan’s befitting response to Indian aggression and the success of Operation Bunyan-um-Marsoos.