Pakistan Wednesday said it shot down five Indian warplanes in reaction to Indian missile strikes.
Information Minister Attaullah Tarar confirmed this to the media but did not share any operational details.
“We shot down two Indian planes and we are responding to Indian aggression right now as we speak,” he told British broadcaster Sky News.
There has been no immediate Indian reaction to the Pakistani claim. India has called its strikes part of “Operation Sindoor.”
Pakistani information minister said the Pakistan retaliation was under way.
Shortly afterwards, Director General Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, head of Pakistan military wing Inter-Services Public Relations confirmed shooting down two Indian jets.
He told American broadcaster CNN: “I can confirm that two aircraft of Indian Air force have been taken down. The locations I have so far are around Bhatinda in India [Punjab] and Akhnoor [in occupied Kashmir.”
Meanwhile, Pakistan Television later reported that “Pakistan Air Force shot down another Indian Rafale aircraft 17 nautical miles southwest of Awantipora. So far, Pakistan Air Force has shot down three fighter jets of the Indian Air Force,” the state channel reported, according to Dawn newspaper.
Citing official sources, Views News Now correspondents reported two of the Indian jets downed by Pakistan are Rafale planes.
Islamabad did not identify which of its fighter planes were involved in the operations against Indian warplanes but Pakistan has F-16 and JF-17 fighter jets in its fleet.
Pakistan military’s media wing said the Indian strikes in the early hours of Wednesday targeted Kotli, Bagh and Muzaffarabad in Pakistan-administered Kashmir known as Azad Kashmir, and Pakistani towns of Bahawalpur, Muridke.
The military confrontation takes place after an April 22 terrorist attack in Indian-administered Kashmir, where 26 people were killed by gunmen.
India blamed Pakistan for the attack.
Islamabad rejected the allegation.
This is a breaking news and being updated.
