By Samson Shen
On April 22nd, militants attacked a tourist resort in Pahalgam, in Indian-controlled Kashmir, resulting in the deaths of at least 26 people, predominantly Indian tourists, and injuring over three dozen others. The militants were reportedly four gunmen who opened fire at close range in the popular Baisaran meadow area. This attack marks the deadliest on civilians in the region in recent years. A group called The Resistance Front soon claimed responsibility for the attack.
The Resistance Front is linked to Lashkar-e-Taiba, a fundamentalist Islamic group based in Pakistan that is listed as a foreign terrorist organization by the United States. The Indian government swiftly accused Pakistan of supporting The Resistance Front in its attack, a claim that Pakistan has vehemently denied. In the face of India’s accusations, Pakistan has also claimed that the attack was a “false flag operation”.
India has taken several measures in retaliation such as revoking visas for Pakistani nationals and closing the land border. India has also, for the first time, suspended the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty which is a key water-sharing treaty that survived two wars between the two countries. In response, Pakistan has warned that India’s suspension of the treaty could be considered an act of war, and has also hinted at suspending the Simla Agreement, which corroborates the ceasefire line in Kashmir. Pakistan has also canceled Indian visas, closed off its airspace to India, and suspended trade.
On April 25th, the situation further deteriorated when Indian and Pakistani soldiers exchanged fire with each other along the UN-established Line of Control, which serves as the de facto border between Pakistan and India within the disputed territory of Kashmir. There were no casualties reported.
The United Nations has urged India and Pakistan to exercise restraint and continue to use dialogue instead of resorting to military escalation, with a spokesperson for Secretary-General António Guterres saying that the UN is appealing to both countries “to ensure that the situation and the developments we’ve seen do not deteriorate any further.” Furthermore, the United States, China, and other global powers are keeping a watchful eye on the situation, given the potential for an all out military conflict in a highly-populated region between two nuclear powers.
Since both India and Pakistan possess nuclear weapons and are strong military powers, the world continues to watch as the situation seems to be escalating with neither country willing to back down.
