Kashmir’s troubled history fuels the ongoing India-Pakistan conflict, with decades of military confrontations and unresolved political tensions.
By Joe D. May 9, 2025
With both countries now engaged in fierce battle far beyond the disputed Kashmir area, tensions between India and Pakistan have erupted into their most extensive military conflict in decades. The violence, which started after India bombed targets in Pakistan and Pakistan-controlled Kashmir on Wednesday, has turned into a full-scale war with several claims of drone strikes, shelling, and civilian deaths.
From a succession of focused attacks, what has developed is a significant military battle. India’s military said on Friday that Pakistani troops had conducted drone strikes and other military operations throughout a large area of India’s western border, aiming at cities including Amritsar in Punjab and Jaisalmer in Rajasthan. Though Pakistan disputed this assertion, the Indian Army said these strikes were “effectively repulsed,” adding to the conflict’s uncertainty and deception.
This increase has been mostly driven by the deployment of drones, a very recent kind of warfare in the area, which has significantly changed how the two nations are battling. Contradictory comments from both sides and extensive media censorship leaving most of the conflict’s specifics unclear add to the fog of war.
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Drones and disinformation herald a new age of warfare.
The present war is a new sort of fight for India and Pakistan. Although both countries have a long history of military skirmishes—most of them centered on the contested Kashmir area—the introduction of drones and the fast dissemination of disinformation are producing a far more complicated and hazardous scenario.
With both countries growingly depending on unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for targeted strikes, the new escalation’s substantial use of drones represents a more general change in how modern warfare is waged. Colonel Arvind Kapoor, a defense specialist from Delhi, stated, “Drones are becoming the go-to weapon for both sides, offering greater precision and reach.” They also generate great doubt, though, and make it more difficult for anyone to confirm what is actually occurring on the ground.
Apart from the new technologies, false information has been everywhere. Both nations have been censoring one other’s media as they try to shape the story. Pakistan has traditionally prohibited Indian news material; now, India has limited access to Pakistani media, including social media news channels. This suppression has fostered an atmosphere in which even local people find it challenging to completely understand the extent of the bloodshed and casualties.
JUST IN: 🇮🇳🇵🇰 India's air defense systems reportedly intercepted all drones launched by Pakistan. pic.twitter.com/NTCfniLIqr
— BRICS News (@BRICSinfo) May 8, 2025
Civilian Toll: Deaths and Destruction Across Borders
The human toll is growing more evident even while military exchanges go on. Residents of Jammu in India-administered Kashmir claimed their city was totally blacked out following drone and missile strikes. Sameer Singh, a neighborhood resident, remarked, “It felt like we were under siege.” We had no means of communication, no power. Though we couldn’t see anything, we did hear drones and rockets overhead.
Likewise, in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, firing from the Indian side has destroyed houses and allegations of civilian fatalities are coming in. Though the figures are unknown, both India and Pakistan have verified deaths and each side accuses the other of starting the conflict. While India charges Pakistan with aggravating the crisis with their drone strikes, Pakistani authorities say Indian artillery bombardment has seriously harmed their infrastructure and civilian life.
Not only is this continuous bloodshed impacting the daily lives of those living close to the Line of Control (LoC), but it also aggravates an already delicate humanitarian situation in Kashmir. The area has been a flashpoint for decades; modern weaponry like drones just increase the hazards.
Kashmir Conflict History: The Origins of an Ongoing Dispute
One of the longest-running geopolitical conflicts in the world is over Kashmir. The roots of the Kashmir dispute go back to 1947, when India and Pakistan were divided into different countries along religious lines. Though the majority of the population was Muslim, a Hindu Maharaja governed Kashmir, a region of strategic and symbolic significance. The decision of the Maharaja to join India instead of Pakistan set off a conflict between the two nations.
Kashmir has been at the center of three conflicts between India and Pakistan since then, the most notable being the 1947-48 conflict, which created the Line of Control (LoC), splitting Kashmir into two territories: one run by India and the other by Pakistan. Kashmir has remained a very disputed area despite many ceasefires, peace negotiations, and foreign involvement.
Long marginalized, the people of Kashmir—especially those in the Indian-administered area—have fought for more autonomy or independence from both India and Pakistan. Over the years, the area has experienced significant turmoil involving insurgencies, human rights violations, and severe military involvement. The outcome is a population with little space for peaceful settlement stuck between two fighting countries.
The Global Consequences: What Is at Stake for the Area and the World
The international community is becoming more worried about the possibility for larger instability in South Asia as the conflict intensifies. Nuclear-armed both, India and Pakistan any more bloodshed could have disastrous effects not only for the area but also for world security.
International relations specialist Dr. Sara Ali stated, “The world has to act now to stop this from spiraling into a full-scale war.” “Given the nuclear capabilities of both countries, the risks are enormous, and the world cannot afford to let this conflict escalate.”
The war’s economic consequences are also starting to show. Already struggling with the consequences of world economic turmoil, India and Pakistan’s economies could suffer long-term harm from border closures, military operations, and interrupted commerce.
The Way Ahead: Could Diplomacy Stop a Full-Blown War?
The path of the India-Pakistan confrontation will be determined in the next several days. Though diplomatic initiatives involving United Nations and other worldwide organizations’ appeals for a rapid ceasefire are ongoing, neither side appears ready to back down.
The international community’s difficulty is how to handle the fundamental problems maintaining decades-long animosity between India and Pakistan. Kashmir’s conflict is still unresolved; without substantial two-country communication, peace is unlikely.
The issue now is whether the present fight will stay contained or if it will spread into a larger battle with catastrophic effects. For the people of Kashmir, and for the world, this is a turning point in the history of one of the most persistent geopolitical conflicts still in existence.
