Pakistan has responded to India's provocative actions after tensions rose after 26 tourists were killed in a militant attack in Indian-administered Kashmir. Islamabad immediately suspended all visas issued to Indian citizens under an exemption scheme, while expelling some of its neighboring diplomats and closing its airspace to Indian flights.
Indian police have named three of
the four suspected gunmen behind the attack, saying two are Pakistani nationals
and the third is a local Kashmiri. Pakistan has denied Indian claims that it
played any role in the shooting. In Tuesday's attack, a group of gunmen opened
fire on tourists near Pahalgam, a resort town in the disputed Himalayan region.
Police in Indian-administered
Kashmir say the three suspects named are members of the Pakistan-based militant
group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT). None of the men has commented on the allegations.
A statement from Pakistan's National Security Committee rejected attempts to
link the Pahalgam attack to Pakistan, saying there was no credible
investigation or corroborating evidence.
Earlier, Prime Minister Narendra
Modi had vowed that "India will identify, track down, and punish every
terrorist and their backers and we will chase them to the ends of the
earth." He said that "the terrorists and their backers behind the
killings will get a punishment bigger than they can even imagine". Our
enemies have dared to attack the soul of the country... The soul of India will
never be broken by terrorism." On Wednesday evening, Delhi announced a
raft of diplomatic measures against Islamabad in light of the killings in
Kashmir - one of them was the immediate closure of the Attari-Wagah border
between the two countries. India also canceled visa services for Pakistani
citizens "with immediate effect". In response, Pakistan also rejected
India's suspension of the Indus Water Treaty - a six-decade-old water-sharing
agreement between the neighbors - and added that any attempt to stop or divert
water The attempt will be considered an "act of war".
The country has closed its
airspace to all Indian-owned or Indian-operated airlines and suspended all
trade with India. It has also reduced the number of diplomats at the Indian
High Commission in Islamabad to 30 and asked Indian defense, naval, and air
advisers to leave Pakistan before April 30.
Police sources have told BBC News that around 1,500 people have been detained across Kashmir for questioning in connection with the attack. Schools, businesses, and shops are reopening after the entire region was shut down following the firing. Police have offered a reward of Rs 2 million [$23,000; £17,600] for information on any attackers.
Pilgrims from different Indian
states were killed and others seriously injured in one of the deadliest attacks
in the region in recent years. An Indian Navy officer on a honeymoon, a tourist
guide who was the sole breadwinner for his family, and a businessman holidaying
with his wife and children were among the victims. An all-party meeting in
Jammu and Kashmir expressed deep shock and grief over what it called a
"barbaric attack". The bodies of the victims, who are arriving in
their home states from around India, are being given an emotional farewell by
their families and loved ones.
Meanwhile, reports of harassment
of Kashmiri students following the killings are coming from parts of India. A
spokesperson for Chief Minister Omar Abdullah's National Conference party said
several videos of students being harassed in colleges and other places were
circulating online. Nasir Khohami, head of the Jammu and Kashmir Students
Association, shared a video of a right-wing Hindu group threatening to
physically attack Kashmiri Muslim students in the northern state of Uttarakhand
to ensure their departure. The BBC has not been able to independently verify
any of the clips.
