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.

India hit Pakistan with air strikes deep into the country, killing dozens, but Pakistan shot down multiple Indian planes. India accused Pakistan of a drone attack near the Kashmiri line of control, which Pakistan denied;

Civilian airports were reopened and stocks jumped in both nations, signs of confidence that the agreement to halt the most alarming fighting in decades was holding.