Following a fatal terrorist assault in Pahalgam, a popular tourist destination in Kashmir, which claimed the lives of 26 people—24 Indian visitors, one Nepali national, and a local guide—India closed its main border crossing with Pakistan and imposed a number of punitive measures.
On Tuesday, April 22, 2025, terrorists opened fire on visitors in the Baisaran Valley, causing global criticism and a strong security response. The attack was one of the bloodiest to strike people in the region in decades.
India responded by declaring that the Attari-Wagah border crossing, a vital land route for travel and trade between the two countries, would be closed immediately. India also demanded that Pakistan “credibly and irrevocably” stop supporting cross-border terrorism, suspending the Indus Waters Treaty, a 1960 World Bank-mediated pact that governs shared river resources essential to agriculture and livelihoods for millions in both countries.
Indian personnel were withdrawn from Islamabad, and Pakistan’s military advisers in New Delhi were given a week to depart India, resulting in the downgrading of diplomatic relations. Visas granted to Pakistani citizens under the SAARC exemption program were revoked, and those who had them were told to leave within 48 hours.
Although no concrete proof was made public, India’s Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri mentioned “cross-border linkages” to the incident. Unverified by independent sources, the hitherto unidentified Kashmir Resistance organization claimed responsibility and claimed the visitors had connections to Indian security forces.
Pakistan called its National Security Council to discuss the worsening situation, denied any participation, and offered its sympathies for the deaths. The seriousness of the issue was highlighted when Prime Minister Narendra Modi canceled a trip abroad to chair emergency security consultations. With the suspension of the Indus Treaty posing long-term threats to regional water security, the steps represent a dramatic escalation in relations between the nuclear-armed neighbors.
