Fear and panic continue to dominate South Asia, with Pakistan and India still engaged in hostilities.

Airports have been shut, exams postponed and markets have been on edge. On Thursday, the military said that 25 Israeli-made Indian drones were shot down over different parts of Pakistan. In some cases, India’s drone attacks led to damage and injuries. While India had struck sites in AJK and Punjab in its initial aggression on May 7, yesterday’s drone targets included Sindh as New Delhi climbed up the escalatory ladder. Indian media outlets claimed that Pakistan attacked targets in held Jammu and Kashmir, but the government has denied this. The fact is that India initiated hostilities against Pakistan on the basis of unproven allegations in the Pahalgam killings, and launched its so-called ‘Operation Sindoor’. Pakistan retaliated by downing five of its jets. It is now time for all to step back from the brink.

India’s defence minister asserted that his country wanted to resolve “problems through dialogue”, while its military stressed its “commitment to non-escalation”. But the fact remains, that India is persisting with its provocative attacks, jeopardising civilian lives on this side of the border. Therefore, its ‘commitment’ to dialogue and non-escalation remains highly questionable.

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