India on Sunday said it inflicted tremendous losses to the Pakistan military, including downing its fighter jets featuring latest technologies and damaging key military installations close to even capital Islamabad, during the three-day confrontation between the two sides.
Political parties, cutting across affiliations and ideologies, Friday welcomed the Kashmir rail link inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, hoping for a boost in trade and tourism in the valley.
Pakistan has halted the construction of contentious canals in Punjab province after India suspended the Indus Waters Treaty following a deadly terrorist attack in Kashmir. The decision to suspend the canals project was made after Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif met with PPP chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari and agreed to address the concerns of Sindh province, where the project had sparked protests. The canals project, aimed at irrigating the desert region in Punjab, was seen as a threat to water resources in Sindh. Both sides have agreed to seek consensus on the issue in the Council of Common Interests (CCI), a high-powered inter-provincial body. Meanwhile, Pakistan has reiterated the importance of the Indus Water Treaty for its water security and economy, and condemned India's move to suspend it.
In a significant shift, Kashmiris from villages once considered strongholds of militancy have joined the condemnation of the recent massacre of 26 people in Pahalgam, raising slogans against terrorism and expressing solidarity with the victims. This unprecedented display of public sentiment across the valley marks a possible turning point in the region's fight against violence.
Tensions between India and Pakistan escalated after Indian fighter jets bombed terror group Jaish-e-Mohammed's biggest training camp near Balakot deep inside Pakistan on February 26.
The opening ceremonies of the cash-rich T20 league have been a heady mix of glitz and glamour with performances by Bollywood and international artistes.
The terrorists had spent around Rs six lakh on procurement of explosives and the Maruti Eeco car used in the attack, the NIA said in its chargesheet.
'The Indian Army won't induct anyone who has killed Indian soldiers.' 'That's why the army respects these reformed men so much -- they're on the frontline now, protecting India.'
Constable Reyaz Ahmad Thokar was shot at in Gudoora in the district on Friday morning, a police spokesman said.
'...without massive amounts of force.'
The camp had been set up recently with a view to enhance security in this militancy-infested district due to the ongoing Panchayat elections.
'Innocent lives lost. Tourists, families, people who were just... living. Seeking beauty. Seeking peace. And now there's only grief.'
The Indian military also acknowledged suffering some losses but declined to provide the details as the operations are going on.
The nine targets struck under 'Operation Sindoor', four in Pakistan and five in Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir, were chosen by the IAF after receiving intelligence inputs about terror camps operating under the guise of health centres to evade detection at these sites, officials said on Wednesday.
'We want to ensure that no government in J&K will be formed without our support.'
It said the decision will immediately benefit approximately 7.8 lakh paramilitary personnel of the ranks of constable, head constable and assistant sub-inspector who were otherwise not eligible earlier.
Bharatiya Janata Party leader and municipal councillor of Pulwama's Tral Rakesh Pandita was killed in the firing by three terrorists in Tral Payeen in Pulwama.
The story of two Adils, one a Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorist and the other a pony 'wallah' who died protecting tourists, highlights the contrasting realities of life in Kashmir. While the terrorist, Aadil Thokar, is accused of the deadly attack on tourists in Baisaran, the heroic pony 'wallah', Syed Adil Hussain Shah, sacrificed his life to save them. Their stories, though separated by a tragic event, reveal the deep-rooted conflict and the enduring spirit of compassion in Kashmir.
Opposition parties in India, including the Congress, Left parties, Samajwadi Party, Bahujan Samaj Party, Trinamool Congress, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, Rashtriya Janata Dal, Shiv Sena (UBT), and NCP (SP), have unanimously hailed the armed forces' "Operation Sindoor", a retaliatory strike against terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). The operation, which involved missile and drone strikes, was conducted in response to the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack. Despite political differences, all parties expressed support for the government and the armed forces, stressing the importance of national unity and integrity in the face of terrorism. While emphasizing the need for diplomatic avenues to prevent further escalation, some parties also called for caution in attributing political credit for the strikes.
Amid rising tensions between India and Pakistan, the US has called on both countries "not to escalate" the conflict. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is expected to speak with the foreign ministers of Pakistan and India as early as today or tomorrow. The US State Department said Washington is reaching out to both India and Pakistan "regarding the Kashmir situation" and telling them "not to escalate the situation."
'Will this near-war, India's strongest military response so far, buy India another seven years of deterrence?' asks Shekhar Gupta.
Despite the tragic terror attack in Pahalgam, Kashmir, locals demonstrated incredible bravery and compassion, risking their own lives to save tourists. Syed Adil Hussain Shah, a pony 'wallah', was killed while protecting tourists from the gunmen, while Nazakat Ahmed Shah rescued a family of 11, including three children. Tourist guide Sajad Ahmad Bhat also carried injured people to the hospital. The attack, which claimed the lives of 26 people, mostly tourists, highlighted the resilience and kindness of the Kashmiri people.
China and Pakistan are in a tight strategic alliance. India must deal with them one at a time, but be prepared in case they decide to collude, points out Shekhar Gupta.
'There's a lot of sense in what Prime Minister Modi did, but the Indian government has to be really prepared for a really sharp escalation spiral.'
When asked why he himself had not taken any action against the Jaish leadership and the organisation when he was in power, the former military ruler said, "Those were different times. Our intelligence men were involved in a tit-for-tat between India and Pakistan... This was continuing at that time and amid all of this, no major action was taken against the Jaish. And I also did not insist."
'Jaish looked to creating regional mayhem, at a time when peace appeared more likely, and when that peace would have threatened Jaish's existence.'
"Great initiative... Which needs to be applauded and followed by everyone," a Twitter user wrote.
This is a third attack on non-local labourers in Kashmir in the past one week.
The terrorists stormed the 185th battalion camp of the Central Reserve Police Force in Lethpora in Kashmir valley around 2 am.
'I am the daughter of a martyr and had lost my father in Kashmir in 1994. I understand what drastic circumstances life brings in front of you.'
Had an inquiry been done, the then home minister (Rajnath Singh) would have to resign. Many officers would have been jailed and there would have been a huge controversy, Malik said.
'...and the country should be impoverished completely.' 'Once this is done, the political class would take over and then play a part in real democracy where the army is under the control of the government, not vice-versa.'
Kashmir's first INOX multiplex in Srinagar's Somwar area will be thrown open to the public next week.
India and Pakistan exchanged lists of their nuclear installations on Wednesday, fulfilling a decades-old agreement that prohibits attacks on each other's atomic facilities. The exchange took place amid strained relations between the two countries over the Kashmir issue and cross-border terrorism. The agreement, signed in 1988, mandates the annual exchange of such lists, which has occurred for the 34th consecutive year.
The Navy chief said this part of the world had witnessed multiple forms of terrorism in recent years and few countries in the region had been spared.
'There is no independently verified imagery or battlefield evidence to support Pakistan's claim.'
One of the slain terrorists was involved in the killing of police constable Reyaz Ahmad earlier this month, a police spokesman said.
Two persons from Uttar Pradesh were shot at by terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir's Budgam district on Friday evening, officials said.
Over 100 terrorists, including high-value targets such as Yusuf Azhar, Abdul Malik Rauf and Mudasir Ahmed, were eliminated during Operation Sindoor on May 7, the Indian military said on Sunday.
