Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has confirmed that Israel provided military support to India during its May confrontation with Pakistan, according to Indian media reports.
Speaking in Jerusalem after a meeting with Indian Ambassador JP Singh, Netanyahu said discussions focused on expanding security and economic cooperation between Israel and India. He later addressed a group of senior Indian journalists, where he reportedly acknowledged the use of Israeli-made weapons in the conflict.
According to an Indian news channel, the arsenal included HARPY drones and the Barak-8 missile system—jointly developed by Israel and India. “The things we provided before worked very well on the field… we develop our weapons in the field and they are battle-tested,” Netanyahu was quoted as saying.
The confrontation followed the April 22 Pahalgam incident in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK), after which New Delhi accused Islamabad of involvement—a claim Pakistan strongly denied.
In May, India launched missile strikes on multiple Pakistani cities, including Muridke and Bahawalpur, in violation of Pakistan’s sovereignty. In response, the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) downed six Indian fighter jets, including Rafales. The clash escalated into artillery, drone, and air strikes between the nuclear-armed neighbours.
The four-day conflict ended on May 10 after then–U.S. President Donald Trump announced a surprise ceasefire on his Truth Social account.
Reports indicate New Delhi has imported $2.9 billion worth of military hardware from Tel Aviv over the past decade, including radars, drones, and missiles. Israel is India’s fourth-largest defence supplier after Russia ($21.8 billion), France ($5.2 billion), and the United States ($4.5 billion).
