Tensions between India and Pakistan escalated sharply on the night of May 8 2025, culminating in a series of drone and missile exchanges that have raised fears of a broader conflict between the nuclear-armed neighbours.

The continuing hostilities were triggered by a deadly terrorist attack in India’s Pahalgam, on April 22, which claimed 26 lives and was perpetrated by a proxy terrorist group backed by the Pakistani military.

India launched a retaliatory operation dubbed Operation Sindoor on May 7 which as revealed by Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh after an all-party briefing in New Delhi on May 8, was not over.

The first phase of the operation involved precision strikes on nine locations inside Pakistan’s own territory as well as Pakistan occupied Kashmir, targeting terrorist infrastructure.

In two seperate media briefings on May 7 and May 8, India reported the elimination of all targets as well as the fact that some of the deceased terrorists were given state funerals in Pakistan. In turn, the Pakistani military asserted on May 7 that it had shot down five Indian fighter jets during the first engagement, and then in another May 8 briefing announced that it had downed 25 Indian drones mostly of Israeli origin over its major cities including Lahore and Rawalpindi - with one of the drones causing partial damage to a military installation.

The government of India then, in its May 8 briefing, said that Pakistan had launched missiles and drones against its military installations across North India which were all intercepted by its integrated air defence grid on the night of May 7 and India had then responded in kind.

India made it clear after the first engagement that it didn’t target Islamabad’s military installations - however it emphasised that any aggression against India in any domain would be responded to. India was therefore forced to retaliate with what appears to be Suppression of Enemy Air Defences (SEAD) operations, claiming to have neutralised a high value Pakistani air defence system in Lahore - which Pakistan denied.

On the evening of May 8, Pakistan again launched drone and missile attacks targeting Indian military installations in Jammu, Rajasthan and Punjab. India's Russian origin S-400 air defence system which is part of its integrated air defence grid successfully intercepted these threats, marking its first publicly known combat deployment.

Meanwhile cross-border shelling has led to civilian casualties and displacement, particularly in India’s Poonch and Uri regions. Both countries have increased security at multiple airports and suspended flights, disrupting regional and international travel.

It is very likely that the exchanges on the nights of May 7 and 8 will become a new trend in the India-Pakistan saga of conflict whereby Pakistan which has no state capacity to bankroll cutting-edge expendable loitering munitions let alone more advance drones may be forced to use cheaper projectiles similar to those employed by Hamas against Israel in another part of the world.