Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif
| Photo Credit:
REUTERS
A top Pakistan defence official warned of the possibility of war with India but said it can be averted, as tensions rise over last week’s militant attacks in the northern region of Kashmir that killed 26 people.
In comments to Pakistani media outlet Geo News, Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif described the next few days as crucial. China, Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states are working to prevent conflict from breaking out, he added.
“If something has to happen, it will happen in two or three days,” Asif told the news channel. “There is an immediate threat.”
India’s Ministry of External Affairs didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday reiterated that India will punish those responsible for killing dozens of tourists in the Jammu and Kashmir region, which his government has called an act of terrorism. That came after India accused Pakistan of involvement and imposed punitive measures, including downgrading diplomatic ties and suspending a crucial water-sharing treaty.
Pakistan has denied any links to the attacks and retaliated by expelling Indian diplomats from Islamabad, closing its airspace to Indian-owned and Indian-operated airlines, and suspending the limited trade between the nations.
Since achieving independence from Britain in 1947, India and Pakistan have fought several major wars over the disputed Himalayan region. The most recent prolonged fighting occurred in 1999, when Pakistani troops infiltrated Kargil, an Indian-controlled district in Kashmir. That lasted for several months until Pakistani forces withdrew from locations on the Line of Control, the de facto border.
The last time the two sides came close to an all-out war was in 2019, when a suicide bomber killed 40 members of India’s security forces. Jaish-e-Mohammed (Soldiers of Mohammed), a Pakistan-based jihadi group, claimed responsibility at the time, prompting India to respond about two weeks later with its first air strikes on Pakistani soil since 1971.
India said its fighter jets attacked an alleged militant training camp in northern Pakistan, with an official saying about 300 militants were killed. Pakistan denied any camp was hit and the next day downed an Indian fighter plane in a dogfight, the first between the two nations in almost 50 years.
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Published on April 29, 2025