Drone incursions at India border renew fears of conflict with Pakistan

Suspected Pakistani drones flew into Indian airspace on Sunday, local authorities said, marking the most significant incident along the tense border since a four-day conflict last May pushed South Asia to the brink of nuclear war.

Security forces detected drone movements at several locations along the border in Samba, Rajouri and Poonch districts of the restive northern territory of Jammu and Kashmir after 6pm, unnamed officials told the Times of India, adding the unmanned aerial vehicles returned after hovering in the Indian airspace for a few minutes.

In the Nowshera sector of Rajouri, the army fired at the drones with medium and light machine guns to drive them away, the newspaper reported.

The alleged drone incursion was the most serious security incident along the border since last year’s fighting, potentially signalling a resurgence in hostilities after nearly eight months of relative calm.

The conflict, marked by heavy missile and drone strikes and intense artillery fire, left hundreds of people dead on both sides and threatened to involve the nuclear-armed neighbours in a full-scale war.

The fighting began after India launched airstrikes across the border, supposedly in retaliation for a militant attack in Kashmir that had killed nearly two dozen people, mostly Hindu tourists, the previous month.

Both sides claimed victory amid a misinformation campaign after the armies declared a ceasefire following significant diplomatic engagement, primarily by the US.

The drone sighting on Sunday renewed fears hostilities could resume along the border, especially after villagers in some of the affected areas reported hearing “intense firing”.

“We don’t know if the drone was intercepted or not, but there was a lot of firing,” a villager in Rajouri told the ANI news agency.

Neither India nor Pakistan has issued a statement yet.

The drone sightings came after Indian forces on Friday claimed to have recovered an arms consignment allegedly dropped in Samba by a drone from Pakistan. The weapons cache included two pistols, three magazines, 16 rounds, and a grenade, officials said.