India downgraded ties with neighbouring Pakistan after at least 26 people were killed in a terror attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir. Terrorists opened fire at tourists on April 22 in one of the worst terror attacks in the region. A day later, India imposed a slew of countermeasures against Pakistan for its alleged support for cross-border terrorism.
1. The Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Kash Patel, offered condolences to all the victims of the recent terror attack in Pahalgam and affirmed the "full support" of the US to the Indian government. He stated that the attack is a reminder of the constant threats that the world faces from the evil of terrorism.
Kash Patel's post on 'X' read, "The FBI sends our condolences to all the victims of the recent terrorist attack in Kashmir — and will continue offering our full support to the Indian government. This is a reminder of the constant threats our world faces from the evils of terrorism. Pray for those affected. Thank you to the men and women of law enforcement who answer the call in moments like these."
2. US President Donald Trump also made a statement on India-Pakistan tensions in Kashmir.
“I am very close to India and I'm very close to Pakistan, and they've had that fight for a thousand years in Kashmir. Kashmir has been going on for a thousand years, probably longer than that. That was a bad one [terrorist attack]," the US President said while addressing reporters aboard Air Force One ahead of Pope Francis funeral.
"There have been tensions on that border for 1,500 years. It's been the same, but I am sure they'll figure it out one way or the other. I know both leaders. There's great tension between Pakistan and India, but there always has been,” Trump added.
Earlier on Wednesday, Trump held a telephonic conversation with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and offered his condolences at the loss of lives in the terror attack. Trump condemned the terror attack in Pahalgam and expressed full support to India to bring to justice the perpetrators of this “heinous attack.”
3. Businessmen from Srinagar took out a rally with luxury cars to protest against the Pahalgam terror attack earlier on Saturday.
The luxury car protest was organised against the Pahalgam terror attack on Saturday. A Srinagar-resident and protester, Imtiaz, told news agency ANI, “It was a sad incident and we all regret that. We want the trust to be rebuilt; we understand that it will take time... We want to raise awareness that we are all united against terrorism...”
4. Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri reacted to former Pakistan Finance Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari's statement on the suspension of the Indus Water treaty. Puri said, "I heard his statement... Tell him to jump somewhere in water... Well, how will he, when there will be no water... Do not dignify such statements... They will get to understand that..."
In response to India's decision to suspend the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) after the Pahalgam terror attack, Bilawal Bhutto had reportedly issued a "stern warning" to India, saying that blood would flow in the Indus rivers if water is stopped.
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“The Indus is ours and will remain ours - either our water will flow through it, or their blood,” former foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto was quoted as saying by Pakistan-based GeoTV while addressing a public rally in the Sukkur area of his home Sindh province.
5. Pakistani Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif reportedly said his country was “ready to cooperate” with “any investigation which is conducted by international inspectors.” In an interview with the New York Times, Asif said on Friday, “We do not want this war to flare up, because flaring up of this war can cause disaster for this region."
6. Pakistan-based Geo TV reported that India released extra water from Kashmir into the Jhelum River without informing Pakistan. The report said the move allegedly caused flooding.
7. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said that the use of water as a weapon is unacceptable and Pakistan would defend its right at all costs, GeoTV reported. It added that during a telephone conversation with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Saturday, the premier reaffirmed that Pakistan condemns terrorism in all its forms and manifestations.
8. Meanwhile, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Saturday condemned the Pahalgam terrorist attack during a phone call with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and emphasised the need for regional cooperation to combat terrorism. President Pezeshkian said that Iran unequivocally denounces such "inhumane acts", Iran's embassy in New Delhi said in a post on X.
9. Bollywood actor Akshay Kumar condemned the terror attack on Saturday. He and the audience in the theatre repeated the powerful "F**k Off" dialogue from 'Kesari 2' in in response to the Pahalgam terror attack, which claimed the lives of 26 people on April 22.
"Unfortunately, aaj bhi humare sab ke dil mein woh gussa phir se jaaga hain. Aap sab log achchi tarah se jaante he main kis chiz ki baat kar raha hoon. Aaj bhi hum un terrorists ko ek hi baat kehna chahenge. Jo maine is film mein kahi hai, kya (Even today we are feeling the same anger. All of you know exactly what I am talking about. Today also I want to say the same thing to the terrorists which I have said in the film. What)?" Akshay said, according to ANI.
Following the recent terror attack in Pahalgam, India officially halted all trade with Pakistan, further escalating tensions between the two countries.
India announced several diplomatic measures, such as closing the Integrated Check Post (ICP) at Attari, suspending the SAARC Visa Exemption Scheme (SVES) for Pakistani nationals, giving them 40 hours to return to their country, and reducing the number of officers in the High Commissions on both sides.
India also halted the Indus Waters Treaty signed in 1960 in the wake of the Pahalgam attack. The Indus Waters Treaty was signed in 1960, following nine years of negotiations between India and Pakistan, with the assistance of the World Bank, which is also a signatory to the treaty.
Pakistan, meanwhile, warned it could suspend the Simla Agreement, a significant peace treaty signed after the 1971 India-Pakistan war that ended in Bangladesh splitting from Pakistan.
Pakistan also announced airspace restrictions for all Indian airlines and closure of the Attari-Wagah border.
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