Category: National

For the first time in history, a French-made Rafale fighter jet has reportedly been shot down in combat.

According to a senior French intelligence official speaking to CNN, Pakistan shot down one Rafale jet operated by the Indian Air Force (IAF). This marks the first combat loss of the advanced French warplane.

Pakistan claimed it had shot down a total of six Indian fighter jets in response to Indian airstrikes, including three Rafales.

Read more: Rafale’s market crashes, JF-17 manufacturer’s stock price soars after Indian debacle

In the early hours of Wednesday morning, India launched a military operation targeting various areas inside Pakistan, including Kotli, Bahawalpur, Muridke, Bagh, and Muzaffarabad.

The airstrikes resulted in the martyrdom of at least 26 Pakistani civilians and left 46 others injured. The strikes followed heightened tensions after the April 22 Pahalgam incident in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK), where 26 Indian tourists were killed. India accused Pakistan of involvement but has yet to present any evidence.

In retaliation, the Pakistan Air Force shot down six Indian aircraft, including three Rafale jets, as confirmed by various international media outlets.

Later on Wednesday evening, Pakistan’s National Security Council (NSC) held an emergency meeting. A statement from the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) stated that, under Article 51 of the UN Charter, Pakistan reserves the right to respond in self-defence, at a time and place of its choosing, against the loss of civilian lives and the blatant violation of its sovereignty.

Meanwhile, panic gripped various parts of Lahore after residents heard heavy artillery fire. This came hours after Pakistan claimed to have shot down 12 Indian drones, including one over Lahore.

Residents in areas such as Cantonment, Cavalry Ground, Gulberg, Kahna, Model Town, Chungi Amar Sidhu, and several phases of the Defence Housing Authority (DHA) rushed for cover in fear of ongoing attacks.

Upon inquiry, authorities informed this correspondent that the heavy gunfire in Walton was part of a test firing exercise by Pakistani forces and not part of any direct conflict.

As of now, the situation remains tense, with both India and Pakistan on high alert and assessing the damages.

Director General of Inter-Services Public Relations (DG ISPR) Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry has confirmed that 12 Indian Harop drones were shot down in various parts of the country since last night.

Addressing the media on Wednesday (today), DG ISPR detailed that armed forces being at a “high state of alert and vigilance” neutralized drones in Lahore, Gujranwala, Chakwal, Bahawalpur, Miano, Karachi, Chhor, Rawalpindi, and Attock.

DG ISPR said that one drone crashed near Lahore, while others were taken down close to Rawalpindi, Chakwal, and Karachi, adding that four Pakistan Army men sustained injuries in Lahore as a result of a drone attack, while one civilian was martyred in Miano, Sindh.

He further stated that Pakistan’s armed forces remain fully alert. India, he said, has targeted mosques and civilians during the ongoing hostilities.

Recalling that the Indian army faced “destruction of five of their aircraft and suffering heavy casualties along the Line of Control (LOC) and damage”, the DG ISPR said India has “apparently lost the plot”.

“The international community can visibly see the path that India is treading through this extremely provocative military aggression in a region that is right now highly fragile and putting the security of the region and beyond at risk.

“Pakistan armed forces remain fully vigilant to any type of threat, and as and when further updates come, I will keep you updated,” the DG ISPR added.

Leader of the Sikhs for Justice (SFJ) movement Gurpatwant Singh Pannun has said that Sikh soldiers in the Indian Army have begun a rebellion against the Indian state following his call not to participate in a war against Pakistan.

Pannun shared a video statement on the @sikhsforjustice Instagram account on Tuesday night, saying that Sikh troops raised the Pakistani flag at Dashmesh College in Indian Punjab as a show of solidarity with Pakistan. The college walls were reportedly painted with slogans such as, “Sikhs welcome the Pakistani Army.”

“The Narendra Modi-led government has already declared war against Pakistan using water as a weapon,” he said.

Pannun further alleged that the Indian government has confiscated the mobile phones of Sikh soldiers, and their families were asked not to make any external contact. 

He also played an audio clip, which he claimed was from a Sikh soldier refusing to fight against Pakistan and pledging support for the Pakistani military.

Urging Sikh soldiers to join hands with Pakistan to establish Khalistan, a separate homeland for Sikhs, Pannun said they would place Khalistani flags on military tanks and march to Delhi, turning it into the capital of Khalistan.

The Supreme Court of Pakistan has overturned the October 2023 ruling by a five-member bench that had barred the military from trying civilians under the Pakistan Army Act in connection with the May 9 violence.

A larger seven-member bench of the apex court, headed by Justice Aminuddin Khan, accepted intra-court appeals challenging the earlier verdict that had declared the military trials of civilians unconstitutional. The new ruling effectively sets aside the previous decision by a majority of five to two.

Five of the seven judges ruled in favour of the appeals, while Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail and Justice Naeem Akhtar Afghan dissented.

According to the short order, the court stated that the earlier judgment declaring military trials of civilians unconstitutional “stands nullified.”

Following the arrest of former prime minister Imran Khan on 9 May 2023, protests erupted nationwide and turned violent. Protesters attacked military installations and public buildings. After the arrests of those involved, the government announced its intent to try them in military courts.

This move was challenged in the Supreme Court, which in October 2023 ruled the decision unconstitutional.

The government then filed intra-court appeals, which have now been upheld by the larger bench.

In a deeply heartbreaking incident, seven-year-old Arz-e-Abbas, son of Pakistan Army Lieutenant Colonel Zaheer, was martyred in a cowardly and unprovoked attack by Indian forces.

According to security sources, the Indian army launched overnight assaults on various areas of Azad Jammu and Kashmir between May 6 and 7. The attack involved heavy shelling and deliberately targeted unarmed civilians, including children.

The tragic death of Arz-e-Abbas has plunged the entire nation into mourning. Condemnation is pouring in over the targeting of innocent lives, with citizens and officials calling it an appalling act of inhumanity.

Pakistan’s armed forces have vowed a strong and decisive response, assuring the nation that the blood of innocent civilians will not go to waste. 

Indian military’s assault on six civilian locations—including Kotli, Muzaffarabad, Bagh, Muridke, and Ahmedpur Sharqia—claimed the lives of at least 26 civilians and left 46 others injured, according to official sources.

The National Security Council’s (NSC) meeting has clarified that in consonance with Article 51 of the UN Charter, Pakistan reserved the right to respond in self-defence at a time, place, and manner of its choosing to avenge the loss of civilian lives and “blatant violation of its sovereignty,” a press release issued by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) today (Wednesday) has said. 

During the intervening night between May 6 and May 7, India launched 24 attacks on six different places on Pakistani soil, martyring 26 innocent civilians and leaving 46 wounded, Director General Inter Services Public Relations (DG ISPR) Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry confirmed in a press briefing Wednesday morning. 

DG ISPR, while outlining Pakistan’s response to India’s aggression, said that one jet each was shot down in the General Areas of Bhatinda, Jammu, Akhnoor, and Srinagar, while two were brought down in Avantipur. He added that the downed Indian aircraft included three Rafale jets, one MiG-29, one SU aircraft, and a Heron combat drone.

“The Armed Forces of Pakistan have duly been authorised to undertake corresponding actions in this regard,” read the PMO statement, which was issued after the NSC meeting.

The forum, convened under the Chairmanship of the Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif, offered fateha for the souls of the innocent civilians martyred in India’s strikes, extended its heartfelt condolences to the near ones of the martyrs, and wished speedy recovery for the injured, said the statement.

The statement further said, “The Armed Forces of Pakistan, in line with the exercise of the right of self-defense and response framework outlined in NSC statement dated 22 April 2025, resolutely defended the territorial integrity of Pakistan, including Azad Jammu and Kashmir, against the Indian aggression, while also bringing down five Indian fighter aircrafts and Unmanned Aerial Vehicles in the process.”

The statement elaborated that the Indian Armed Forces on the night of 6/7 May 2025, launched coordinated missile, air and drone strikes on multiple locations within Pakistan’s sovereign territory, including Sialkot, Shakargarh, Muridke and Bahawalpur in Punjab, Kotli and Muzaffarabad in Azad Jammu and Kashmir.

Terming the attack “unprovoked” and “unjustified” the forum said that the enemy deliberately targeted the civilian areas on the false pretext of presence of imaginary terrorist camps, resulting in the martyrdom of innocent men, women, and children, and causing damage to the civilian infrastructure, including mosques.

“India’s act of aggression also caused grave danger to commercial airlines belonging to brotherly gulf countries, endangering the lives of thousands of on-board passengers. Besides, the Neelum-Jhelum Hydropower Project was also deliberately targeted in violation of international conventions,” the statement reads.

PMO’s statement further said that the NSC meeting condemned the “illegal acts” by India as “blatant violations of Pakistan’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, which manifestly constituted acts of war under international law”.

“The deliberate targeting of civilians, including innocent women and children, by the Indian military constitutes a heinous and shameful crime, that is in violation of all norms of human behaviour and the provisions of international law.”

“Pakistan has been emphatically rejecting Indian allegations claiming the presence of terrorist camps on its territory. It would also be recalled that immediately after 22 April 2025, Pakistan made a sincere offer for a credible, transparent and neutral investigation, which unfortunately was not accepted. The international media personnel had already visited these “imaginary terrorist camps” on 6 May 2025, and more visits were planned for 7 May 2025. 

However, apprehensive of its falsehood being exposed, and without a shred of evidence about its claims, the Indian leadership, bereft of any morality, has now gone to the extent of attacking innocent civilians in order to satiate its delusional thoughts and short-sighted political objectives. Attacking its innocent people is neither tolerable nor acceptable to Pakistan. India, against all sanity and rationality has once again ignited an inferno in the region, the responsibility for ensuing consequences shall lie squarely with India,” the statement concluded.