31 civilians martyred, 57 injured in Indian strikes: DG ISPR

In a strongly worded press conference held on Wednesday, Director General Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry confirmed that at least 31 innocent civilians were martyred and 57 others sustained injuries in a series of overnight Indian air strikes on Pakistani territory.

Addressing national and international media, Lt Gen Chaudhry condemned the Indian strikes, labelling them a “cowardly attack” deliberately carried out under the cover of darkness to target unarmed civilians in populated areas.

“Our enemy is so cowardly that instead of confronting our military forces head-on, it attacks unarmed civilians and populated areas in the darkness,” he stated.

Lt Gen Chaudhry said that India’s conduct revealed a dangerous shift in strategy — moving from the use of terrorist proxies to direct military aggression. He argued that India's desperation had escalated into blatant acts of terrorism.

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“When we made life difficult for terrorist proxies, India resorted to using its own military to carry out acts of terror,” he said. “Targeting innocent citizens and children — if that’s not terrorism, then what is?”

The DG ISPR affirmed that Pakistan’s armed forces responded swiftly and decisively, targeting only Indian military installations in retaliation.

“In self-defense, our forces struck only military targets. We did not resort to targeting innocent civilians like the cowardly enemy,” he said, emphasising Pakistan’s adherence to international rules of engagement.

Highlighting the effectiveness of Pakistan’s military response, he confirmed that the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) had shot down five Indian fighter jets, including three Rafale aircraft, in what he called a "rare and exceptional aerial battle."

“Such aerial combat is rarely witnessed. We are proud of our Air Force for defending the country with precision and professionalism,” he stated.