Match in Kashmir: India takes punitive measures against Pakistan

One day after an attack on a group of tourists in the Indian -controlled part of Kashmir with at least 26 deaths, India decided on a number of punitive measures against his archenemy Pakistan. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced the closure of the most important joint border crossing and the suspension of an agreement to distribute water resources. The measures were justified by the fact that Pakistan supports “cross -border terrorism”.

The attack occurred on Tuesday in the popular holiday destination Pahalgam, which is about 90 kilometers from the city of Srinagar. The attackers killed 26 Indians and a Nepalese, all of men. The attack on tourists shocked a shock because the militant groups in the region usually commit minor attacks on Indian security forces.

The Indian Minister of Defense Rajnath Singh announced a quick reaction on Wednesday. “Those who are responsible for such an act will soon hear our answer, clearly and clearly,” he said in a speech in New Delhi. The Indian authorities would not only hold the assassins, but also the masterminds.

The high-ranking Indian diplomat Vikram Misri announced on Wednesday that as a consequence of the attack, his country would suspend the Indus water agreement with Pakistan. This applies until Pakistan is credible and finally supported by his support for cross -border terrorism “. The agreement concluded in 1960 regulates the distribution of important water reserves from Himalayan flows.

In addition, according to Misri, the main border crossing between India and Pakistan is closed. India also reduces the diplomatic staff in its message in Islamabad and has on the other hand that Pakistan has to reduce the number of his diplomats in India.

No group initially confessed to the attack. The Indian army said on Wednesday that it shot two armed fighters near the border with Pakistan. In the city of Baramulla in the Himalayan region, two terrorists were eliminated in a “violent change of shooting (…). The incident was therefore not directly linked to the attack on the tourists that it was an “attempted infiltration” of the army.

In the majority of Muslims inhabited cashmere, insurgents have been causing unrest for decades. They call for the independence of Kashmir or a connection to Pakistan, which also controls part of the area.

India regularly accuses Pakistan of supporting the armed insurgents, which rejects Pakistan. The government in Islamabad assures that it only supports people’s struggle for self -determination.

The Pakistani Ministry of Foreign Affairs addressed the relatives of the victims of the attack on Wednesday. Defense Minister Khawaja Asif announced that the National Security Committee will be convened because of the Indian punitive measures, which only meets in exceptional cases. There will be a reaction. The Pakistani Vice Prime Minister Muhammad Ishaq Dar accused India of a “very unjust” and hasty reaction. “If you have any evidence, you should share them with us,” he said.

The northern Himalayan region of Kashmir has been shared in 1947 since India and Pakistan’s independence. Both countries claim the area completely for themselves and have already led two wars to control the mountain region. India has stationed half a million soldiers in the region and has been performing rebel groups there since 1989. Tens of thousands of civilians, soldiers and rebels were killed.

The Indian government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi raised the partial autonomy of the area in 2019 and, under direct control of the federal government in New Delhi. Since then, the fights have subsided. Expert Michael Kugelman warned that the attack on Tuesday is a “very serious risk of a new crisis between India and Pakistan and probably the most difficult risk since the short military conflict that occurred in 2019”.