India Strikes Again: Destroys Air Defence System In Lahore

The Indian armed forces targeted air defence radars at a number of locations in Pakistan and destroyed the system in Lahore on Thursday after Islamabad attempted to strike 15 military targets in India in response to Operation Sindoor. Sources said the HQ-9 missile defence system units, developed by China, were hit, effectively rendering the Pakistani army defenceless in Lahore.

The government's statement came shortly after Pakistan claimed one drone crashed near Lahore, while 12 others were taken down close to Gujranwala, Chakwal, Bahawalpur, Miano, Karachi, Chhor, Rawalpindi, and Attock. Pakistan claimed that four army personnel sustained injuries in Lahore, while one civilian was killed in Miano, Sindh.

The statement said Indian forces had targeted and neutralised Pakistani Air Defence Radars and systems in several locations, including Lahore, in response to Pak attempts to attack multiple locations, including Srinagar, Pathankot, Amritsar, Ludhiana, Chandigarh, and Gujarat. Pak forces used drones and missiles that were disabled by India's air defence systems.

The incident comes a day after India struck terror camps in Pakistan, in an operation named 'Sindoor', in response to the Pahalgam terror attack, which claimed 26 lives.

The government said on the intervening night of May 7-8, Pakistan attempted to target a number of military installations in Awantipura, Srinagar, Jammu, Pathankot, Amritsar, Kapurthala, Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Adampur, Bhatinda, Chandigarh, Nal, Phalodi, Uttarlai, and Bhuj, using drones and missiles. However, the drones and missiles were neutralised by the Integrated Counter UAS Grid and the Russia-made S-400 Triumf air defence systems.

In Lahore, sirens went off and people ran out of their homes as a series of loud explosions were heard near Walton airport, Reuters and local media reported. Visuals showed people running out of their houses in panic and reported seeing clouds of smoke.

Local reports said flight operations at Sialkot, Karachi, and Lahore airports have been temporarily suspended. No casualties or damage to civilian infrastructure have been reported so far.

On Wednesday, a joint operation by the Army and the Indian Air Force (IAF) destroyed terror camps in nine locations in Pakistan linked to banned outfits Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) and Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) under 'Operation Sindoor'. In response to the strikes, the Pakistani army opened artillery fire, targeting the civilian population along the Line of Control in the Poonch-Rajouri area, killing 15 civilians.