Indian-administered Kashmir crackdown sparks anger as Pakistan tensions escalate

Indian-administered Kashmir crackdown sparks anger as Pakistan tensions escalate
People gather near a damaged house related to the family of Ahsan Ul Haq Sheikh, who is suspected of involvement in the Pahalgam tourist attack, in Murran village of Pulwama, south of Srinagar, on April 26, 2025. (AFP)
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Updated 28 April 2025
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Indian-administered Kashmir crackdown sparks anger as Pakistan tensions escalate

Indian-administered Kashmir crackdown sparks anger as Pakistan tensions escalate
  • New Delhi has accused Pakistan of supporting ‘cross-border terrorism’ after gunmen killed 26 people in Kashmir on Apr. 22
  • Islamabad has denied any role and called attempts to link Pakistan to the attack ‘frivolous,’ vowing to respond to Indian action

SRINAGAR: Anger in Indian-administered Kashmir escalated on Monday over sweeping detentions in the hunt for the gunmen who carried out a deadly attack last week that New Delhi blames on arch-rival Pakistan.
New Delhi has accused Pakistan of supporting “cross-border terrorism” after gunmen killed 26 people on April 22, the worst attack on civilians in contested Muslim-majority Kashmir for a quarter of a century.
Islamabad has denied any role, calling attempts to link Pakistan to the attack “frivolous” and vowing to respond to Indian action.
Relations between the nuclear-armed rivals have plunged to their lowest level in years, sparking worries by analysts of possible military action.
The attack also sparked a huge manhunt for the gunmen in Kashmir, with Indian security forces blowing up nine homes of suspected rebels, as well as detaining nearly 2,000 people for questioning, a senior police official told AFP.
“Punish the guilty, show them no mercy, but don’t let innocent people become collateral damage,” Jammu and Kashmir’s Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said in a statement.
Aga Ruhullah, a federal lawmaker from Kashmir, said: “Kashmir and Kashmiris are being given a collective punishment.”
Security operations in the search for the gunmen come as India and Pakistani forces have exchanged fire across the de facto border in the rugged and remote high-altitude Himalayan outposts.
India’s army said on Monday its troops and Pakistani forces had fired at each other for a fourth night in a row.
There were no reported casualties. Islamabad did not immediately confirm the gunfire from Pakistan.
“During the night of April 27-28... Pakistan Army posts initiated unprovoked small arms fire across the Line of Control,” the Indian army said in a statement, referring to the de facto border in contested Kashmir.
“Indian troops responded swiftly and effectively,” it said.
Muslim-majority Kashmir has been divided between India and Pakistan since their independence from British rule in 1947.
Both claim the territory in full.
Rebels in the Indian-run area have waged an insurgency since 1989, seeking independence or a merger with Pakistan.
Indian police have issued wanted posters for three men — two Pakistanis and an Indian — who they say are members of the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba group, a UN-designated terrorist organization.
They have announced a two million rupee ($23,500) bounty for information leading to each man’s arrest.
India is also hunting several of its own citizens in connection to the killings, sweeping up those they suspect may have information on the attackers.
“It’s a revolving door in police stations as part of the ongoing investigation,” said a senior police official who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media.
“Some have already been let go, and more are being summoned to police stations,” the officer said.
The homes of men suspected of having links to the attackers have also been blown up at night.
Yasmeena, the sister of fugitive accused Ashif Sheikh, said her family was being punished, with their home demolished even though they had not seen her brother for three years.
“If my brother is involved, how is it the family’s sin?” she said.
“This house doesn’t belong to him alone.”
New Delhi has downgraded diplomatic ties since the attack, withdrawn visas for Pakistanis, suspended a water-sharing treaty, and announced the closure of the main land border crossing with Pakistan.
In response, Islamabad ordered the expulsion of Indian diplomats and military advisers, canceled visas for Indian nationals and barred its airspace to Indian airplanes.
India’s Defense Minister Rajnath Singh met with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday after warning last week that those responsible for the attack in Kashmir would see a response “loud and clear.”
The United Nations has urged the arch-rivals to show “maximum restraint” so that issues can be “resolved peacefully through meaningful mutual engagement.”
China, which shares a border with both India and Pakistan, urged both sides on Monday to “exercise restraint, meet each other halfway” and “properly handle relevant differences through dialogue,” foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said.
Iran has already offered to mediate, and Saudi Arabia has said Riyadh was trying to “prevent an escalation.”


‘Brothers forever’: Pakistani military acknowledges Saudi role in truce with India

‘Brothers forever’: Pakistani military acknowledges Saudi role in truce with India
Updated 29 min 27 sec ago
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‘Brothers forever’: Pakistani military acknowledges Saudi role in truce with India

‘Brothers forever’: Pakistani military acknowledges Saudi role in truce with India
  • Pakistan and India this month traded missile, drone and artillery strikes over an attack in Indian-administered Kashmir
  • The conflict alarmed world leaders and friendly nations, with a Saudi minister traveling to New Delhi and Islamabad

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s military spokesman, Lt. Gen. Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, has acknowledged Saudi Arabia’s role in helping secure a ceasefire with India, after the nuclear-armed neighbors exchanged heavy cross-border fire this month.

India on May 7 launched a series of strikes across the Line of Control — the de facto border that separates the Indian-controlled and Pakistani-controlled parts of Kashmir. It also hit other sites on the Pakistani mainland, targeting what it claimed were militant positions.

Pakistan retaliated with strikes on Indian military targets before the ceasefire took effect on May 10, following efforts by world powers and friendly nations, including Saudi Arabia, to quickly de-escalate the conflict.

The Kingdom’s role in mediation was “very positive and wonderful,” Lt. Gen. Chaudhry told Arab News.

Pakistan and India have fought multiple wars since their independence from British rule in 1947. Two of the wars were over the disputed region of Kashmir, which both claim in full but rule in part.

The recent escalation came days after New Delhi blamed Pakistan for a deadly attack on tourists in Indian-administered Kashmir — Islamabad denied any involvement.

As the neighbors exchanged fire, Saudi Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Adel Al-Jubeir visited both New Delhi and Islamabad. The May 10 truce was reached shortly afterward.

Saudi Arabia and Pakistan share close diplomatic and strategic relations, and the Kingdom has provided significant support to Pakistan during its prolonged economic challenges in recent years.

“The bond between the people of Pakistan and the people of Saudi Arabia is very strong, and we in the armed forces have a very close bond with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. And this is a relationship that is based on respect,” Lt. Gen. Chaudhry said.

“Saudis are our brothers, brothers forever.”

Spokesperson of the Pakistan Armed Forces, Lt. Gen. Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry (right), speaks to Arab News Pakistan in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, on May 16, 2025. (AN photo)

Six killed, one injured as family feud turns violent in Pakistan’s northwest — official

Six killed, one injured as family feud turns violent in Pakistan’s northwest — official
Updated 37 min 4 sec ago
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Six killed, one injured as family feud turns violent in Pakistan’s northwest — official

Six killed, one injured as family feud turns violent in Pakistan’s northwest — official
  • The deceased persons included three men and three women
  • Injured woman shifted to Peshawar’s Lady Reading Hospital

PESHAWAR: At least six persons were killed and a woman sustained gunshot wounds in a violent altercation between two families in the northwestern Pakistani city of Peshawar, rescue officials said on Monday.

The incident took place near the Khatko Bridge area reportedly over domestic issues, according to District Emergency Officer Ghayoor Mushtaq Khan.

The deceased included three men and three women.

“As a result of the gunfire, one woman was critically injured, while six others died on the spot,” Khan said in a statement.

It added the Rescue 1122 service responded to the emergency, provided first aid to the injured woman and transferred her to Peshawar’s Lady Reading Hospital.

Family feuds are common in Pakistan and that often violent and last for long in parts of the country where tribal customs and laws are followed by residents.

In June last year, 10 members of a family, including a two-year-old, were killed in a late-night attack in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, police said.


Pakistani police search for suspect in killing of Ahmadi minority doctor

Pakistani police search for suspect in killing of Ahmadi minority doctor
Updated 53 min 15 sec ago
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Pakistani police search for suspect in killing of Ahmadi minority doctor

Pakistani police search for suspect in killing of Ahmadi minority doctor
  • Official says the motive behind the killing remains unclear and a probe is ongoing
  • There are about 500,000 Ahmadis in Pakistan, a nation of more than 240 million

LAHORE: Pakistani police stepped up their search Monday for the suspect in the killing of a doctor from the country’s Ahmadi minority, the latest in a string of deadly attacks targeting the community.

The physician was gunned down at a private hospital where he worked in the eastern city of Sargodha on Friday. The gunman fled the scene.

The Ahmadi faith was established in the Indian subcontinent in the 19th century by Mirza Ghulam Ahmad. Pakistan’s Parliament declared Ahmadis non-Muslims in 1974, with their homes and places of worship attacked over the decades by hard-liners who consider them heretics.

There are about 500,000 Ahmadis in Pakistan, a nation of more than 240 million.

No one claimed responsibility for Friday’s killing but supporters of Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan party have carried out many of the attacks on Ahmadis, accusing them of blasphemy.

Sargodha police official, Sikandar Ali, said the motive behind the killing of Dr. Sheikh Mahmood remains unclear. An investigation is ongoing, he said.

Mahmood’s killing was the third attack on Ahmadis in Pakistan since April, said Amir Mahmood, a spokesman for the Ahmadi community.

He urged the government to protect Ahmadis, whose places of worship and even graveyards are also often desecrated by extremist groups.


‘What if this were me?’: Pakistani-Dutch filmmaker amplifies Afghan voices challenging refugee stereotypes

‘What if this were me?’: Pakistani-Dutch filmmaker amplifies Afghan voices challenging refugee stereotypes
Updated 18 min 51 sec ago
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‘What if this were me?’: Pakistani-Dutch filmmaker amplifies Afghan voices challenging refugee stereotypes

‘What if this were me?’: Pakistani-Dutch filmmaker amplifies Afghan voices challenging refugee stereotypes
  • Anya Raza’s ‘On the Mountain’ captures the dilemma of an Afghan woman teacher, who is caught between love, family and unforgiving realities of the conflict
  • The filmmaker urges Pakistan to reconsider its decision to expel Afghan refugees, saying ‘it is very important that they have their basic human rights and dignity’

ISLAMABAD: Anya Raza was in Washington and watched with the whole world in disbelief as the Afghan capital of Kabul fell to the Taliban in August 2021, marking an end to two decades of United States-led intervention.

The chaos that unfolded moved the Pakistani-Dutch writer and filmmaker to reach out to the Afghans, who desperately sought to relocate to safety, as well as humanitarian and other workers involved in the process.

Their tales of love, loss, devastation and despair compelled Raza to document these heart-wrenching stories to humanize the Afghan refugee crisis for the world, which largely seemed to be indifferent to the chaos.

Her film, ‘On the Mountain,’ based on true stories Raza encountered during the interviews, challenges stereotypes and offers a deeply human perspective on the plight of Afghan refugees, according to the filmmaker.

“I interviewed a lot of refugees, people working with refugees, humanitarian workers, case workers, resettlement officers, and others involved. Time and again, I was struck by the sheer devastation, loss, and the immense decisions people had to make just to keep uprooting their families, to keep them safe,” Raza told Arab News, on the sidelines of the Women International Film Festival in Islamabad last week.

“After 20 years of war, the voices of Afghan people weren’t reaching the international stage, despite all the sacrifices they made, despite the destruction. It felt like a way for me to lend my voice as an artist, to break some of the silos.”

The 13-minute film captures the dilemma of an Afghan woman teacher who is caught between love, family and the unforgiving realities of the conflict, forced to make heartbreaking choices.

Set against the backdrop of a turbulent Kabul in 2021, Raza says the film is both a “social and political statement” that challenges stereotypes and biases relating to refugees and offers audiences a chance to reflect on the human characters behind headlines.

“There are a lot of prejudices, biases, and stereotypes when it comes to refugees — their role in communities, how they are perceived,” she said.

“This film is an invitation into an Afghan home, into the love and tough decisions that a family must make. It lets viewers ask, ‘What if this were me?’“

But for Raza, whose work has sparked discussions around identity, nationality and human rights, bringing the film to life was not without challenges.

“For artists, it’s always difficult to secure funding for projects. You might find money, but it’s harder to find people who align with your values,” she said.

The film continues to connect with audiences around the world and evokes powerful emotions and reflections from the attendees at the Islamabad festival.

But despite the effort, the reality has drastically changed for many Afghan refugees since the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan and thousands of them fled to Pakistan to seek refuge there, according to the filmmaker.

Today, those same refugees face forced repatriation and are being driven back to the uncertainty they once escaped.

“It breaks my heart to see Afghans who have lived here their whole lives, who felt that Pakistan was their home, [are] now being forced to leave without any of their belongings,” Raza said.

Pakistan has repatriated approximately 1.3 million Afghan refugees in a deportation drive launched since Nov. 2023, according to officials. The drive was launched after Islamabad witnessed a surge in suicide attacks and militancy that it blamed on Afghan nationals, without providing evidence.

The government in Islamabad initially said it was focusing on expelling foreigners with no legal documentation and other categories, such as Afghan Citizen Card (ACC)-- a document launched in 2017 to grant temporary legal status to Afghan refugees— would be included later. This year, Pakistan’s interior ministry asked all ACC holders to leave the country by March and started deporting them from April 1.

In total, Pakistan has hosted over 2.8 million Afghan refugees who crossed the border during 40 years of conflict in their homeland.

Raza urged Islamabad to reconsider its decision to expel Afghan refugees: “It’s very important that they have their basic human rights, their dignity, that they’re safe.”


Pakistan deputy PM leaves for China to discuss situation after India standoff

Pakistan deputy PM leaves for China to discuss situation after India standoff
Updated 19 May 2025
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Pakistan deputy PM leaves for China to discuss situation after India standoff

Pakistan deputy PM leaves for China to discuss situation after India standoff
  • The development comes amid a truce between Pakistan, India after a four-day military conflict that killed around 70 people this month
  • India is seen as a key partner by the West as a counter-balance to China, while Pakistan shares an ‘all-weather partnership’ with Beijing

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s deputy prime minister and foreign minister, Ishaq Dar, on Monday left for China on a three-day visit to discuss “evolving regional situation in South Asia,” the Pakistani foreign ministry said, days after India and Pakistan traded strikes on each other’s territory.

The development comes amid a ceasefire between Pakistan and India after a four-day military conflict between the nuclear-armed neighbors this month saw the use of fighter jets, missiles, drones and artillery, leaving around 70 people, including civilians, dead on both sides of the border.

In recent years, India has been seen as an important partner by Western powers as a counter-balance to China’s rising influence, while the strategic, cooperative relationship between Pakistan and Beijing has further strengthened over the last decade, with China rolling over loans and investing in mega infrastructure projects in Pakistan.

Dar will hold in-depth discussions with Foreign Minister Wang Yi on the evolving situation and its “implications for peace and stability” in South Asia, while the two sides will also review the entire spectrum of Pakistan-China bilateral relations, according to the Pakistani foreign ministry.

“Whatever matters are there, we [will] review and discuss them. These are political, local, regional, multilateral and even global issues,” Dar told reporters before leaving for Beijing.

This month’s military conflict between India and Pakistan was triggered by a gun attack on tourists in Indian-administered Kashmir’s Pahalgam town, which killed 26 people on April 22. India blamed the assault on Pakistan. Islamabad denies the charge and has called for a credible, international probe into it.

The standoff began after India hit what it said were “terrorist camps” in multiple Pakistani cities with missiles on May 7. Pakistan responded swiftly and said it had downed six Indian fighter jets. The strikes continued over a course of four days, with both countries pounding the other’s defense installations and infrastructure.

“The entire world knows that all the allegations hurled against us were wrong,” Dar said. “Even China knows the entire world knows.”

Separately, PM Shehbaz Sharif has decided to send a high-level diplomatic delegation to important world capitals to expose ‘Indian propaganda’ against Islamabad, Pakistani state media reported.

“The delegation will visit London, Washington, Paris and Brussels to highlight India’s disinformation campaign and its attempts to destabilize regional peace,” the Radio Pakistan broadcaster said, adding Sharif has tasked ex-foreign minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari with leading the body.

“It will also underscore Pakistan’s sincere efforts for peace and stability in the region.”

Bitter rivals India and Pakistan have fought three wars, including two over the disputed region of Kashmir, since gaining independence from British rule in 1947. Both claim the Himalayan territory in its entirety but rule it in part.

Analysts and diplomats have long feared that a conflict between the arch-foes could escalate into the use of nuclear weapons, in one of the world’s most dangerous and most populated nuclear flashpoint regions.

China, which borders both Pakistan and India, this month urged the arch-foes to exercise restraint as did other world powers and friendly nations.

Pakistan’s foreign ministry said Dar’s visit is part of the ongoing high-level exchanges between Pakistan and China

“It also underscores the two countries’ shared commitment to further strengthen the All-Weather Strategic Cooperative Partnership,” it added.