Pictures taken of parts of an aircraft that crashed in Indian-administered Kashmir show the label of a French manufacturer, lending support to Pakistan’s claims that it had shot down three of India’s top-of-the-line Rafale fighter jets.

The label shows an aircraft part from French filtration company Le Bozec et Gautier. Le Bozec is a French-based subsidiary of Minnesota’s Donaldson Company.

CNN has not been able to independently verify whether the part shown in the pictures came from a Rafale jet, nor Pakistan’s claims of shooting down the aircraft.

The Rafale fighters are made by France’s Dassault Aviation.

Residents of Indian-administered Kashmir woke to the sounds of explosions and shelling after India launched cross-border strikes against its neighbor, with some hiding in fear and others cheering the strikes as long-overdue revenge.

“I woke up around 2:30 a.m. and heard sounds of explosions and firing across the border. This went on until 5:30 a.m.,” said the resident, who requested not to be named.

India’s strikes – on what it called “terrorist infrastructure” – come more than two weeks after militants killed 26 civilians in Indian-controlled Kashmir. New Delhi pinned the massacre on Pakistan, though Islamabad denied those claims.

Pakistan said it shot down five Indian Air Force jets in response. India has not confirmed the fighter jet losses and CNN is unable to verify the claim.

“We spent a sleepless night because of the heavy shelling,” said one resident living in the village of Uroosa, close to the Line of Control that divides Indian- and Pakistani-controlled parts of Kashmir.

“There were cries of children, women and it was a desperate situation,” said the resident, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

A 21-year-old student living in the village of Uroosa told CNN that “shelling was happening all night. Everyone is scared, there is damage in the area too. People are scared and are planning to leave.”

Elsewhere in India-administered Kashmir, residents cheered news of India’s attack, according to video footage by ANI.

Another resident told the outlet that “there was much anger among the people” following last month’s massacre. “Hence, this was indeed needed.”

An unidentified aircraft has crashed in Indian-administered Kashmir, according to an eyewitness and a local government official.

The aircraft came down in the village of Wuyan, which lies 19 kilometers to the southeast of Srinagar, the main city in Indian-administered Kashmir.

A duty officer at the fire service headquarters in Srinagar told CNN that a fighter aircraft had crashed on a school building in Wuyan.

“Our personnel are still at the site and details are awaited,” the officer, who requested anonymity, said.

Photos published by AFP news agency showed aircraft wreckage lying in a field next to a red brick building in Wuyan, which CNN has also geolocated.

It was not immediately clear from the pictures of the wreckage who the aircraft belonged to.

Locals in Srinagar heard a loud explosion earlier on Wednesday around the time when India said it was conducting airstrikes against Pakistan.

The name India chose for its military operation against Pakistan appears laden with religious symbolism.

“Operation Sindoor” is a reference to the red vermilion, or powder, many Hindu women wear on their foreheads after marriage.

April’s massacre on civilians in Indian-administered Kashmir left several women widowed.

In the days following the attack, an image of a woman lying next to the lifeless body of her husband went viral, becoming a symbol of the pain and heartbreak endured by victims of the assault.

India’s defense and foreign ministers have both posted an image on X of the name of the operation, which depicts the red powder.

“The world must show zero tolerance for terrorism,” India’s Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar wrote on X.

“Victory to India,” Defense Minister Rajnath Singh wrote in Hindi.

Following India’s strikes on what it said was “terrorist infrastructure” in Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir, India’s Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said “the world must show zero tolerance for terrorism” in a post on X.

The strikes Wednesday came more than two weeks after a massacre of tourists in Indian-administered Kashmir that New Delhi blamed on its neighbor.

It’s now morning in India and Pakistan and the region is on edge after New Delhi launched a military attack on its neighbor in the early hours of Wednesday. Pakistan claimed it shot down five Indian Air Force jets in response, in a major escalation between the nuclear-armed rivals.

Here’s what we know:

Commercial airlines are keeping almost entirely clear of Pakistani airspace, Flightradar24.com shows, after India launched strikes inside Pakistan in a major escalation between the two neighbors.

India’s military operation inside Pakistan comes despite major global players urging restraint in the days leading up to the strikes.

Here’s how major global players have responded:

Pakistani security sources claim three of the five Indian planes it downed were Rafale fighter jets — prized assets of the Indian Air Force that were only acquired several years ago as New Delhi looked to beef up its military.

CNN has not independently confirmed Pakistan’s claims and has reached out to the Indian government and military for response.

Before this latest escalation, India had 36 Rafale jets in its Air Force, purchased from French manufacturer Dassault Aviation.

The fighter jets were first ordered in 2016 and began arriving in 2020. At the time, India’s defense minister, Rajnath Singh, claimed the new jets were “among the best in the world,” and would make the Indian Air Force “much stronger to deter any threat that may be posed on our country.”

In late April, India signed a $7.4 billion deal to buy 26 more Rafale jets from France, with delivery expected from 2030.

What to know about these jets: The jets come in one-seat or two-seat versions and can be armed with air-to-air, air-to-ground and anti-ship missiles as well as a 30mm cannon, according to the manufacturer. Dassault Aviation also touts the Rafale’s Flight Control System, which includes the ability for it to fly on autopilot in a terrain-following mode in all weather conditions.

The Rafale is not a stealth jet, but it is promoted as having a low profile that is not easy to detect on radar. It also has one distinct advantage — combat experience.

Flown by French forces, the Rafale has been used in operations in Afghanistan, Libya, Mali, Iraq and Syria, according to Dassault Aviation’s website.

India and Pakistan, two neighbors with a long history of conflict, are in dangerous territory, analysts warn, with Islamabad vowing to retaliate against New Delhi’s strikes and the risk of tit-for-tat responses spiraling into an all out war.

Wednesday’s operation inside Pakistan is the deepest India has struck inside its neighbor since the Indo-Pakistan war of 1971, the biggest war between the two countries.

India’s decision to strike comes more than two weeks after 26 people, mostly Indian civilians, were massacred in an attack in Indian-administered Kashmir. New Delhi blamed Islamabad for the assault, a claim Pakistan denies.

Pakistan said eight people were killed during India’s Wednesday strikes, including children, in what the country’s prime minister described as “an act of war.” Islamabad also claimed it shot down five Indian Air Force planes and a drone during the attack.

New Delhi has not publicly confirmed Pakistan’s claim and CNN cannot independently it.

While India’s decision to strike Pakistan isn’t unsurprising – analysts had been saying it was a matter of when, and not if – analysts fear we could see further escalations between the two nuclear-armed nations in the coming hours and days.

India’s strikes against Pakistan come more than two weeks of mounting pressure on Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to forcefully retaliate against its neighbor after a tourist massacre in Indian-administered Kashmir.

Last month militants stormed the mountainous and picturesque district of Pahalgam and killed 25 Indian tourists in the worst assault on Indian civilians in recent years. The massacre immediately cratered already hostile relations between New Delhi and Islamabad, with New Delhi swift to blame its neighbor.

Modi – a strongman Hindu-nationalist leader who has positioned himself as the protector of the nation and last year won a rare third term in power – immediately vowed to pursue the attackers “to the ends of the earth.”

He governs a proud, nationalistic nation that believes in its ability to handle difficult situations.

Following the massacre, India’s loud and often jingoistic media immediately called for blood.

“We want revenge” read a headline on one channel. “Bharat is battle ready,” read another, referring to India by its Sanskrit title.

Analysts say it was only a matter of time before Modi and his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) responded with force.

“Modi and his government believe it is imperative to respond to Pahalgam,” said Derek J. Grossman, a senior defense analyst at the RAND Corporation, a US-based think tank.

“Indians are very likely to support New Delhi’s response – regardless of what it is, perhaps except for a nuclear response – because they believe Pakistan must be deterred in the future.”

The chief minister of Pakistan’s Punjab province has asked hospitals in the region to remain on alert and ordered schools to remain closed on Wednesday.

According to Pakistan’s military, six of the eight people killed in the strikes died in attacks on Ahmadpur East and Muridke in the Punjab province. CNN cannot independently verify the claim.

Maryam Nawaz Sharif, Punjab’s chief minister, announced she had issued emergency response orders for Punjab, in a post on X Tuesday.

The chief minister called on rescue teams, district administration and hospitals to remain on alert. She also said educational institutions in the province will remain closed on Wednesday.

Sharif said Pakistan wanted peace but would become “a legion” if war was imposed.

“India started it, we’ll finish it,” she wrote on X, adding that the whole nation stands with the Pakistani military.

Three civilians in Indian-administered Kashmir were killed in shelling by Pakistani troops from across the border, according to the Indian Army.

The Pakistan Army “resorted to arbitrary firing and artillery shelling” from posts across the Line of Control that divides the disputed territory of Kashmir, the Indian Army said in a statement.

“Indian Army are responding in proportionate manner,” the statement said.

Schools, colleges and educational institutions will be closed today across Jammu, Samba, Kathua, Rajouri and Poonch “in view of the prevailing situation,” according to Divisional Commissioner Jammu.