Mohammed Waheed fell asleep at his home in Kashmir, Pakistan, in the early hours of Wednesday morning when a huge explosion shocked his home.

He told the BBC that he added: "Even before handling what was happening, more missiles hit, causing widespread panic and confusion."

“The kids are crying, the women are running around trying to find safety.”

Mr Waheed lives in Muzaffarabad, the capital of Kashmir managed by Pakistan - one of at least three places hit by an Indian missile strike on Wednesday.

The Indian military said it was a strike in response to radical attacks in Indian-managed Kashmir, killing 26 civilians. It has blamed Pakistan's militant groups on the attack, accusing Islamabad of supporting them by default - allegations from Pakistan have been denied.

The BBC spoke with witnesses from India and Pakistan, and Kashmir described the Indian strike and the consequences of Pakistan's shelling.

Pakistan said eight civilians were killed and 35 were injured in the strike this morning, Islamabad said.

Indian troops also said at least seven civilians were killed by Pakistan on the side of the Line of Control (LOC) - the de facto border between the two countries.

Ruby Kaur, who lives in the Indian Poonch district of LOC, was identified as one of the killed Indians.

Her uncle Buava Singh told the BBC that a mortar shell hit near Kaur's house at about 1:45 a.m., killing her on the spot and injuring her daughter.

"Her husband is not going well yet. When the mortar shell is approaching her house, she wakes up to make tea for him."

He added that the heavy shelling on Wednesday morning was "we have never seen it so far." Singh said there was no community bunker in the area, which meant residents were forced to shelter at home.

"Shredded shrapnel hit her in the head. She was bleeding heavily. We drove her to a nearby hospital but was pronounced dead."

Another Poonch resident said they heard "a few hours of explosion Wednesday night."

"This is a panic situation throughout the city and other areas of the other Lines of Control (LOC)," Dr Zamroood Mughal said via phone.

"People can't sleep all night. People give up their houses and run to safer places. The shells hit the main town near the forest offices, damaging the nearby structure."

Muhammad Younis Shah of Pakistan-managed Kashmir described how four missiles launched by India landed on an educational complex in the suburbs of Southern Sahadan, destroying a mosque in the process.

"There are schools and universities for children, hotels and medical complexes here," he said. "The first three missiles appeared in a row, while the fourth missile had a spacing of five to seven minutes."

Despite the ongoing rescue operations, locals say they expect the violence to escalate further and are fearful of what might happen next.

"We are scared and we don't know what to do," Mr Wahid said. "People are running away from their homes and the feeling of uncertainty is overwhelming."

His Muzaffarabad resident Shahnawaz echoed this, saying he and his family are now “struggling to find a safe place”.

“We expect something to happen and now we are worried about further escalation.”

Delhi emphasized Wednesday's action was "centralized, measured and non-shrinkable in nature", but locals in the target area of ​​Pakistan-managed Kashmir said their mosque and residential complex were part of it.

Mr Waheed told the BBC that he could not understand why his local mosque was hit during a strike, claiming he had injured "dozens of men and women" near Muzaffarabad.

"It's hard to understand," he said. "It's a normal street mosque and we pray five times a day. We've never seen any suspicious activity around us."

Delhi highlighted its actions against terrorist infrastructure on Wednesday, saying it was selected “based on reliable intelligence inputs”.

But locals in the target area of ​​Kashmir, managed by Pakistan, say their mosques and residential complexes are part of it.

Mr Waheed could not understand why his local mosque was hit, which injured "dozens of men and women" near his Muzaffarabad.

"It's hard to understand," he said. "It's a normal street mosque and we pray five times a day. We've never seen any suspicious activity around us."