U.S. urges Pakistan to condemn Pahalgam terrorist attacks, escalating tensions with India | Indian News
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio called on Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to explicitly condemn the “unreasonable” Pahargan terrorist attacks and take action to ease the intensification of tensions with India, the State Department said Thursday.
State Department spokesman Tammy Bruce reported that Rubio also urged Pakistan to make an investigation into the attack and re-enter direct diplomatic communication with India. Bruce further added: “Both leaders reaffirmed their shared commitment to terrorists’ responsibility for their heinous actions.”
The diplomatic initiative follows April 22 after a terrorist attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, where Pakistan-sponsored terrorists killed 26 people, including most tourists and were injured. The attack triggered a sharp decline in India-Pakistan relations.
Cross-border tensions that have escalated after the attack
India witnessed an uptrend of ceasefire violations in Pakistan along the Line of Control (LOC) following the Pahalgam incident. Indian security forces accelerated counter-terrorism operations in the Kashmir Valley, as well as reactions to cross-fires by Kupuwara, Pornchi, Tutmari Gaili and Rampur departments.
India has been taking a series of retaliatory steps such as suspending the Indian Water Treaty, cessing operations at the Atari Comprehensive Checkpoint, closing visits to Pakistan’s airspace and reducing diplomatic representatives from the two countries.
India’s harsh warning about terrorism
After the attack, Prime Minister Narendra Modi promised India would pursue and punish everyone. “India will pursue terrorists and their supporters to the end of the earth. Terrorism will not be punished,” he said.
A day later, the Cabinet Security Committee (CCS) convened a discussion. Officials informed CCS attackers of cross-border links, pointing out that the attack was during the successful Jamuk and Kashmir elections and the trajectory of its economic recovery.
The U.S. call for restraint and responsibility is amid the growing international unrest about South Asia’s stability.
