By Staff Reporter
LAHORE: Pakistan’s Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi said on Sunday that Islamabad possesses video footage of six Indian aircraft shot down during a brief military confrontation between the nuclear-armed neighbours in May, reigniting debate over the fiercely contested aerial losses in the conflict.
Addressing a seminar in Lahore, Naqvi said he was involved in several matters surrounding the war with India and was privy to several key pieces of information. “The army, air force, navy and government have all been acknowledged during the past month-and-a-half, but our intelligence agencies were doing important work behind the scenes,” he said. “Our institutions had information on India’s (plans) well ahead of time. We knew whatever they (India) planned, what aircraft they would use. Our intelligence agencies’ role was so important, but they do not come forward. We need to acknowledge them.”
The interior minister said that when Indian planes were downed, the decision was made not to announce this without evidence. “We had radar data, but we needed field evidence,” he explained. “Within minutes, we received video footage of all six planes, which were shot down. We have this footage.”
Naqvi then outlined two incidents where seven Indian missiles struck a Pakistani base, adding that once they were launched, it became clear they were heading across the border. “People got worried, we have important hardware at this base,” he said, not mentioning the base’s name or location. “Not a single missile hit that base. Some fell short, some hit outside the base.”
“When we launched our missiles, we targeted military installations near populated areas, but made every effort to avoid civilian casualties,” Naqvi added. “We destroyed one of their biggest oil depots and there were no civilian casualties. That is when we knew that God was helping us.”
The interior minister added that Nur Khan Airbase near Rawalpindi, which was struck by Indian missiles, suffered no damage. “We had damage at one base where a member of the air force was martyred, but that’s about it,” he said.
Pakistan has repeatedly claimed it downed six Indian planes during the conflict, including advanced French-made Dassault Rafale jets. India’s highest-ranking general has also acknowledged that its forces suffered losses in the air, but denied losing six aircraft.
The military confrontation between India and Pakistan came in May as the former, without evidence, linked a militant attack to Islamabad, which strongly denied the allegations. The conflict, dubbed the 2025 India-Pakistan crisis, was triggered by a terrorist attack on April 22 in Pahalgam, a town in occupied Kashmir, where militants killed 26 tourists and injured others in one of the deadliest assaults on civilians in the region since 2000.
The four-day escalation marked the most intense fighting between the rivals since their 1999 Kargil war, involving fighter jets, drones, missiles, and artillery, with both sides claiming significant victories amid conflicting narratives. Both sides agreed to stop the hostilities after a US-brokered ceasefire. Casualty figures and losses numbers remain disputed. Independent verification of aerial claims is scarce. Pakistan has not released the purported video footage, and social media images of wreckage have been dismissed as manipulated or from unrelated incidents. Aviation experts have noted Pakistan’s use of Chinese J-10C jets and PL-15 missiles, potentially giving an edge.
Last month, Chinese air force chief Lieutenant General Wang Gang lauded the “exemplary performance” during the aerial clash, praising the “decisive and measured response delivered by PAF pilots under the resolute leadership of the air chief”.
In July, United States President Donald Trump said that five jets were shot down during the conflict. He made his remarks at a dinner with some Republican US lawmakers at the White House, but did not specify which side’s jets he was referring to.
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