Although the air strikes and artillery fire between India and Pakistan have mostly fallen silent, Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif took aim at his counterpart over the border on Wednesday, accusing Narendra Modi of fanning instability and vowing a harsh response to future attacks.

At 2.09 am on Saturday, Ahmad Subhan, who lives near an air base in the Pakistan military garrison city of Rawalpindi, heard the first explosion that rattled the windows of his house - and took South Asia to the brink of war.