Pahalgam terror attack: Pak army opens fire along LoC, India retaliates

Army chief General Upendra Dwivedi visits J&K to review ground situation

With tensions heightened between India and Pakistan in the wake of Tuesday's attack on tourists in Pahalgam, the Pakistan army on Friday initiated firing of small arms in some places along the Line of Control (LoC), sources in the know said, adding that the Indian Army responded effectively, and no casualties had been reported.

 

In a ground-forces operation, led by the Indian Army, “one suspected LeT terrorist” was killed and the houses of two “suspected local terrorists” were demolished with explosives, according to Indian sources.

 

Many Army-led operations were underway in Jammu and Kashmir at the time of going to press. A manhunt was on for the remaining attackers. The exact number of those involved in the attack was unknown.

 

Chief of the Army Staff General Upendra Dwivedi visited Jammu and Kashmir to review the ground situation and spoke to the military and civil authorities, including top officers of the Army’s Northern Command.

 

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday dialled the chief ministers of all the states and asked them to ensure that no Pakistani stays in India beyond the deadline set for leaving the country, sources said.

 

India on Thursday announced revoking all visas issued to Pakistani nationals from April 27 and advised Indian nationals residing in Pakistan to return home at the earliest.

 

Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi visited the Army's 92 Base hospital at Badamibagh Cantonment to inquire about those injured in the attack.

 

The Congress leader also met J-K Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha and Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and the two briefed him about what happened.

 

Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri briefed the Group of 20 countries, which include five permanent members of the UN Security Council, as well as the Arab world on Thursday.

 

Other secretaries of the Ministry of External Affairs briefed more countries on Friday. The meetings included explaining India’s diplomatic actions, according to an Indian source with direct knowledge.

 

The Indian Navy test-fired a surface-to-air missile in the Arabian Sea and the Indian Air Force conducted a drill on Thursday. The IAF undertook “routine flying” on Friday.

 

“The attack was carried out with the intention of bringing Kashmir back into international focus,” another Indian source said, adding that “a sense of normalcy” was felt there lately.

 

Millions, including foreign nationals, visited the region for tourism in recent years, according to the local government.    With inputs from PTI