Pakistan expects India to attack within 24 hours: Modi gives carte blanche to his armed forces
30 April 11:02
Pakistan has reported having “credible intelligence” that India is preparing a military operation in the near future, "Komersant Ukrainian" reports, citing Reuters. Tensions between the two nuclear powers reached a critical point after a deadly attack on tourists in Indian Kashmir.
As Pakistan’s Information Minister Attaullah Tarar wrote in X, India could attack Pakistan within the next 24 hours.
“Pakistan has credible intelligence that India intends to take military action within the next 24-36 hours, using the Pahalgam incident as a pretext. Any aggression will be met with a decisive response. India will bear full responsibility for the potentially catastrophic consequences in the region,”
– the minister wrote. The post was published around midnight Kyiv time, so the official’s prediction had about 24 hours to come true.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in turn, has already vowed to find and punish the perpetrators of the attack, and also gave the military leadership freedom to choose a response to the terrorist attack. According to a government source, the security committee of the Indian cabinet, which includes Modi and the ministers of home affairs, defense, internal security and finance, will meet today, the second since the April 22 attack.
Meanwhile, exchanges of fire between the armies of the two countries have spread to new sections of the border. The Indian army reported that it responded to “unprovoked” firing from several Pakistani military posts around midnight on Tuesday, the sixth consecutive violation of the ceasefire agreement.
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Details of the attack and the escalation of the conflict
The attack, which took place on April 22 in the Pahalgam district, claimed the lives of 26 people. According to eyewitnesses and officials, the attackers separated the men, asked for their names, and targeted Hindus by shooting them at close range.
India has identified the three attackers, including two Pakistanis, as “terrorists” waging an armed struggle in predominantly Muslim Kashmir. Islamabad denied any involvement and called for an independent investigation.
After the attack, both countries took retaliatory measures: India suspended the critical Indus Water Treaty and cut off water supplies to Pakistan from the river, and Pakistan closed its airspace to Indian airlines.
Historical context of the conflict
India and Pakistan are longtime rivals, stemming from the partition of British India in 1947. Both countries claim the entire territory of Kashmir, but control only parts of it.
India, where the majority of the population professes Hinduism, accuses Islamic Pakistan of financing and encouraging militants in Kashmir. Islamabad, on the other hand, claims that it provides only moral and diplomatic support to Kashmiris in their quest for self-determination.
The international community is concerned about the escalation of the conflict. The United States has called on both sides not to escalate tensions. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is expected to hold talks with his counterparts in India and Pakistan soon.
The United Kingdom called for calm among Indian and Pakistani communities on its territory and advised against travel to Jammu and Kashmir, except in certain cases.
