International desk: India says it has carried out air strikes against militants following a suicide bomb attack earlier this month.
Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale said the strikes targeted Balakot, but it is not clear if that is in Pakistan or Pakistani-administered Kashmir. He said several militants were killed, according to BBC report.
Pakistan said it scrambled fighter planes in response. The move represents an escalation of hostilities between the two nuclear-armed neighbours.
Mr Gokhale told a news conference that the strikes had targeted the militant group Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM).
The latest incident follows a suicide attack on an Indian security convoy in Pulwama, in Indian-administered Kashmir, earlier this month.
