A blast was heard in Pakistan's Lahore on Thursday morning, according to local broadcaster Geo TV. The claims of the blast surface at a volatile time as tensions between the neighboring nations are escalating after India’s ‘Operation Sindoor’.
AP reported that Pakistan's air defense shot down an Indian drone. Mohammad Rizwan - a local police official - said a drone was shot near Walton Airport. It was not immediately clear if the drone was armed, according to AP.
People rushed out of their residences after multiple explosions were heard near Lahore’s Walton Road, GeoTv reported. There were reportedly at least two to three blasts.
Pakistan’s local media reported of smoke plumes rising after the blast. Security authorities have cordoned off the area and an investigation is underway.
Lahore police reportedly shot down a drone leading to the sound of the blast, according to GeoTV.
Flights have been temporarily suspended at Karachi, Lahore and Sialkot airports. However, it is unknown if the move comes after the explosions heard in Lahore.
In Pakistan's Chakwal district, a drone cashed into farmland. District police chief Ghulam Mohiuddin did not disclose the origin of the drone. Investigation of the drone’s origin and purpose are underway. No casualties were reported, AP reported.
Situations in India and Pakistan have been tense since the April 22 Pahalgam attack in Jammu and Kashmir when at least 26 civilians were killed. As a retaliation, India on May 7 launched ‘Operation Sindoor’ where the Indian Armed Forces carried out a "measured, non-escalatory, proportionate, and responsible" strike to dismantle nine terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan.
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has vowed a response to India, saying that New Delhi’s Operation Sindoor is a “blatant act of war”.
"For the blatant mistake that India made last night, it will now have to pay the price," Sharif said in a televised address on state broadcaster PTV, Reuters reported. "Perhaps they thought that we would retreat, but they forgot that...this is a nation of brave people."
