Tensions between India and Pakistan have intensified following a claim by a senior Pakistani official that India may launch a military strike within the next 24 to 36 hours.
The announcement, made early Wednesday by Pakistan’s Minister for Information and Broadcasting Attaullah Tarar, has drawn international attention and calls for restraint from both the United States and China.
“Pakistan has credible intelligence that India intends to carry out military action against Pakistan in the next 24 to 36 hours,” Tarar said in a post on X (formerly Twitter).
He did not provide further details or supporting evidence for the claim. India has not yet issued an official response to the allegation.
The claim comes shortly after a deadly attack in the tourist town of Pahalgam, located in Indian-administered Kashmir, which killed 26 civilians. India has accused Pakistan of being linked to the attack, though Islamabad denies involvement and has called for a neutral investigation. A statement initially attributed to the Resistance Front, a group reportedly affiliated with the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba, denied responsibility after earlier reports of a claim.
In the wake of the incident, India has taken several retaliatory measures, including the revocation of Pakistani visas, suspension of its participation in the Indus Waters Treaty, and demolition of homes linked to alleged militants. Pakistan responded by ordering Indian diplomats and citizens to return and restricting airspace access for Indian flights.
Both countries have also engaged in military posturing in recent days. India’s navy conducted missile tests, while Pakistan claims to have shot down an Indian drone over the disputed Kashmir region. Gunfire has been exchanged nightly along the Line of Control (LoC), the de facto border dividing Indian- and Pakistani-administered Kashmir.
The volatile Kashmir region has long been a flashpoint in South Asia. India and Pakistan have fought three wars since their partition in 1947, two of them over Kashmir. Both nations possess nuclear weapons, and recent escalations have raised concerns about regional and global stability.
International actors have responded with caution. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and his team have urged both countries to refrain from escalating the conflict and are in contact with counterparts in New Delhi and Islamabad. China, which also has territorial claims in the Kashmir region and maintains close ties with Pakistan, echoed similar sentiments. UN Secretary-General António Guterres has also reportedly spoken with leaders from both countries, stressing the importance of avoiding a confrontation.
Pakistan’s Minister of Defence, Khawaja Muhammad Asif, reinforced the gravity of the situation in comments to Reuters, suggesting any Indian incursion would be met with a decisive response but emphasizing that nuclear weapons would only be considered if Pakistan’s existence were threatened.
BBC, CNN, and Al Jazeera contributed to this report.
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