India should back off

Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar and Director General of Inter-Services Public Relations (DG ISPR) Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry addressed a critical press conference yesterday, following a deeply alarming escalation: multiple Indian drones, including one that attempted to strike a military installation in Lahore, violated Pakistan’s airspace. These drones – confirmed to be of Israeli origin – were intercepted over major cities including Lahore, Karachi, and Rawalpindi. India, in its usual fashion, resorted to lies and baseless propaganda to justify this unprovoked aggression. It claimed that Pakistan had launched strikes on 15 sites inside India – allegations Pakistan categorically dismissed as “baseless and fictional”. During the press conference, visuals were presented that clearly showed India had actually attacked its own territory in Amritsar in a staged and sinister attempt to create discord.

This was a deeply insidious move. India’s aim is not just military provocation; it is also obviously aiming at psychological and social manipulation. By targeting Amritsar, a region with immense significance for the Sikh community, India is attempting to create fissures between Sikhs and Pakistan – well aware of the deep cultural and religious ties that Pakistan maintains with the global Sikh community. The Modi regime’s intentions are clear: to use hate, deceit and division to serve its narrow political goals. India has a long history of targeting its minorities – Muslim, Sikh, Christian or Dalit – as part of its Hindutva-driven agenda. Under Modi, anything and everything becomes acceptable in the name of nationalism. The goal is simple: to stoke war hysteria and rally support at home. This is not the first time. When the Pahalgam attack occurred, Indian media – essentially the mouthpiece of the BJP – instantly blamed Pakistan without a shred of evidence. A well-coordinated media frenzy was unleashed to manufacture a reason for attacking Pakistan. The idea was to attack, then declare victory. But this time, things did not go according to plan. Pakistan’s armed forces responded with full force, shooting down five Indian Air Force jets and one drone. India’s attempt to humiliate Pakistan turned into a national embarrassment.

Modi’s failure in his first attempt is exactly why he has provoked Pakistan again. He wants a response – a military confrontation – to feed his domestic political narrative. However, Pakistan has so far exercised restraint and responded through clear evidence, international engagement and transparency. On the other hand, India’s lies stand fully exposed. In this second unprovoked attack, Indian drones again targeted civilian areas and infrastructure using Israeli technology – a serious international concern. Adding to the disinformation campaign, Indian media and social media platforms on Thursday night were filled with sensational reports claiming that Pakistani drones or projectiles had struck Jammu. However, as of late that night, security sources in Pakistan denied these claims outright, calling them fabricated and part of the same pattern of misinformation designed to justify further aggression. That said, Pakistan now faces a strategic dilemma. The first option is to continue defending against such attacks without initiating a response. But this is no longer tenable. Repeated violations of sovereignty cannot be tolerated indefinitely. The second option is to carry out a counterstrike, but this brings the grave risk of full-scale war between two nuclear-armed nations. If that happens, the blame will lie squarely on Modi and the international community that stood by silently. Aggressive diplomacy is now Pakistan’s most viable path. It must engage the world with urgency, exposing Modi’s dangerous game and pressing for international accountability. Pakistan has no desire for war, but we will not allow our nation to be turned into a target of repeated aggression. The world must wake up to the threat Modi poses – not just to Pakistan, but to regional and global stability. No one should want a nuclear confrontation. The world needs to wake up.