India-Pakistan latest: Pakistan calls airstrikes ‘act of war’ as it says it shot down Indian jets; death toll soars

British foreign secretary David Lammy has “reached out” to his counterparts in India and Pakistan, one of his cabinet colleagues has said.

“You will understand that when there is action of this kind, we can anticipate it, (but) we wouldn’t have shared with us the details of the retaliatory response,” trade secretary Jonathan Reynolds told Sky News this morning.

“I do know the foreign secretary has reached out to both partners, as have our American allies and other key partners, other key European allies as part of this.

“Sometimes what is required is a trusted channel of communication. That’s for both parties to decide if that’s the way forward. But they both do have an interest in de-escalation and, of course, in regional security.”

Indian prime minister Narendra Modi has postponed his upcoming trip to Europe after New Delhi launched airstrikes on Pakistan this morning, Reuters reported.

Mr Modi was scheduled to visit Oslo on 15 May for the third India-Nordic summit. He was supposed to travel to Croatia and the Netherlands as well.

“Pakistan has a history of swift counterattacks – it’s something we’re taught in army training as well. So, a retaliation is not a question of ‘if’ but ‘when’,” Lt Col JS Sodhi told The Independent’s Shweta Sharma.

“Pakistan will have to respond to satisfy its domestic audience. Not doing so would invite criticism for both the Shehbaz Sharif government and the Pakistan Army.”

Russia’s foreign ministry said it was deeply concerned about the worsening military confrontation between India and Pakistan, and that it called for both countries to show restraint.

Russia, which has warm relations with both India and Pakistan, said it condemned all forms of terrorism in a statement published on the foreign ministry’s website.

Indian aviation authorities have reportedly shut nine airports in the northern and western parts of the country.

Indian flag-carrier Air India today said flights to and from Jammu, Srinagar, Leh, Jodhpur, Amritsar, Bhuj, Jamnagar, Chandigarh, and Rajkot were cancelled until 10 May due to airport closures.

The Indian air force has already taken over India-administered Kashmir’s Srinagar airport and suspended all commercial flights.

India said it targeted nine alleged militant hideouts in Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir in a pre-dawn strike this morning.

New Delhi said the attack was retaliation for a terror attack on 22 April that killed 26 people, mostly tourists, in Kashmir.

Pakistan said it shot down five Indian aircraft during the strikes, with confirmed reports of multiple jets coming down on the Indian side of the de facto border. India has not commented on the number of jets downed.

Pakistan’s prime minister Shehbaz Sharif called the airstrikes an “act of war” and added that Islamabad reserves the right to “give a strong response”.

At least 26 civilians, including children, were killed in the airstrikes in Pakistan, that also targeted a mosque, Pakistani authorities said.

India said 10 of its citizens were killed in heavy Pakistani shelling along the Line of Control, the de facto border between the two parts of Kashmir administered by the two countries. Both control part of Kashmir but claim it in full.

India has shut nine civilian airports in the north and western parts of the country, while its air force has taken over Indian-administered Kashmir’s main airport in Srinagar.

India’s foreign ministry said the strikes had been conducted in part because further attacks were being planned in Pakistan. Foreign secretary Vikram Misri said India on Wednesday “exercised its right to preempt any terrorist attack”. “These actions were measured and non-escalatory and proportionate”, he added.

The British government has issued new travel advisories for India and Pakistan.

Pakistan’s foreign ministry said it has summoned the Indian embassy’s charge d’affaires to protest against New Delhi airstrikes, which they say killed at least 26 civilians.

“It was conveyed that India’s blatant act of aggression constitutes a clear violation of Pakistan’s sovereignty,” the foreign ministry said.

Pakistani officials said a missile strike on the Bahawalpur mosque killed 13, including women and children.

The Indian government has begun conducting a nationwide civil defence drill today to test preparations for an attack on its territory amid the military escalation with its neighbour, Pakistan.

The drill is expected to be the largest civil defence drill in India since 1971, the year India and Pakistan went to war which led to the formation of Bangladesh.

The home ministry has ordered several states and federal territories to conduct mock drills to test air raid warning sirens, evacuation plans, implement crash blackout measures, and training people to respond in case of any attacks.

Britons have been advised not to travel to parts of India and Pakistan following a deadly escalation in conflict between the two nations.

India, in an overnight attack, struck nine alleged infrastructure sites used by militants linked to last month’s massacre of tourists in the India-administered Kashmir.

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) updated its travel advice for the region, warning against all travel within 10km of the India-Pakistan border and the Balochistan province of Pakistan.

The FCDO advises against all travel to the region of Jammu and Kashmir, except travel by air to and from the city of Jammu and travel within the city and union territory of Leh.

A statement said: “On the night of 6 May (UK Time), the Indian Ministry of Defence stated it had struck nine sites in Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir.”

In response, there are reports of Pakistani artillery fire across the Line of Control.

“On the night of 6 May (UK Time) Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority indicated that it was closing Pakistan airspace for at least 48 hours.

There are reports of flights being diverted. British nationals should contact their airline for up-to-date information.

“We are continuing to monitor the situation closely. British nationals should stay up to date with our travel advice and follow the advice of local authorities.”