World leaders from across the world strongly condemned the deadly terrorist attack which took place in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir on Tuesday, April 22.
According to police and media reports, armed gunmen killed at least 26 people on Tuesday in the picturesque tourist resort of Pahalgam in the deadliest such attack in a quarter-century in Kashmir, setting off a chain of tit-for-tat moves by India and Pakistan and raising the spectre of a full-fledged conflict between the nuclear-armed neighbours.
Heart-wrenching videos of victims and their families are circulating on social media, with survivors sharing personal accounts of how armed militants killed their loved ones. Many amongst them were newly married couples. Indian Navy officer Lt Vinay Narwal was one of them.
“This attack is much larger than anything we’ve seen directed at civilians in recent years,” Omar Abdullah, the region’s top elected official, wrote on social media.
“We will come down heavily on the perpetrators with the harshest consequences,” India’s home minister, Amit Shah, wrote on social media. He arrived in Srinagar, the main city in Indian-controlled Kashmir, and convened a meeting with top security officials.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi cut short his two-day visit to Saudi Arabia and returned to New Delhi early Wednesday. In his first public remarks after the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, Modi on Thursday said India will pursue the perpetrators of the dastardly act to the ends of the earth, break their backs and raze them to the ground. He termed the attack as an assault not just on the innocent tourists, but the very soul of India and said the “perpetrators and conspirators of the act would get a punishment they would never have imagined”.
“Today, from the soil of Bihar, I say to the whole world that we will pursue them to the ends of the earth. India’s spirit will never be broken by terrorism. Every effort will be made to ensure justice is done. The entire nation is firm in this resolve. Everyone who believes in humanity is with us. I thank the people of various countries and their leaders who have stood with us in these times,” said the PM, switching to English in between as he spoke on the occasion of a National Panchayati Raj Day event.
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres strongly condemned the attack and stressed that “attacks against civilians are unacceptable under any circumstances,” U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.
U.S. Vice President JD Vance, who was visiting India, called it a “devastating terrorist attack.” He added on social media: “Over the past few days, we have been overcome with the beauty of this country and its people. Our thoughts and prayers are with them as they mourn this horrific attack.”
U.S. President Donald Trump noted on social media the “deeply disturbing news out of Kashmir. The United States stands strong with India against terrorism.” Other global leaders, including Russian President Vladimir Putin and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, condemned the attack.
“The United States stands with India,” U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on X.
Tulsi Gabbard, Director of National Intelligence, US, said, “We stand with the people of India in condemning the terrorist attack in Jammu & Kashmir, and send our condolences and prayers to the victims families. We must all stand up against these jihadists and their ideology.”
Canada was slow to join the leaders in condemning the attacks, but later Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney wrote on platform X, “I am horrified by the terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir, a senseless and shocking act of violence that has killed and injured innocent civilians and tourists. Canada strongly condemns this terrorist attack. We offer our condolences to the victims and their families.”
Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre said, “I condemn in the strongest terms the horrific terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir that took the lives of innocent civilians, including tourists and families. Our hearts are with the victims, their loved ones, and all those affected. Canada stands united against terror in all its forms.”
“Prime Minister @GiorgiaMeloni called Prime Minister @narendramodi and strongly condemned the terrible terror attack on Indian soil. She conveyed her thoughts and prayers for the victims and wished a speedy recovery of those injured. She expressed full support of Italy in the fight against terrorism. PM Modi appreciated her call and the clear message of support against terrorism and those behind it. India and Italy will continue to work together including in international platforms to strengthen counter-terrorism efforts”, Indian Ministry of External Affairs wrote on X.
Various Indo-Canadian organizations too joined the world in condemning the attacks. Candle light vigils are being organized in different parts of Canada to stand in solidarity with the victims and pay tribute to those innocent who lost their lives in this brutal act of terror.
How has the Indian government responded?
A statement issued in the name of The Resistance Front (TRF), which is believed to be an offshoot of the Pakistani-based Lashkar-e-Taiba, claimed responsibility for the attack. India announced a series of retaliatory steps on Wednesday after its leaders huddled for hours in the morning, following PM Modi’s return from Saudi Arabia.
The steps include:
- Suspending India’s participation in the Indus Waters Treaty, a 1960 pact that has governed how India and Pakistan share the waters of the six Indus basin rivers. In theory, India could now try to cut – or entirely stop – the flow of water from these rivers into Pakistan, though that is practically difficult.
- The main land border crossing between the two countries, the Integrated Check Post Attari, or the Attari-Wagah crossing, will be closed with immediate effect, and those who have crossed over with “valid endorsements” have to return through the route before May 1.
- SAARC Visa Exemption Scheme (SVES) visas granted to Pakistanis have been cancelled, and any Pakistani currently visiting India on a SVES visa must leave within 48 hours of the statement issued on Wednesday.
- The military, naval and air advisers in the Pakistani High Commission in New Delhi have a week to leave India, while Indian military, naval and air advisers will be pulled back from the Indian High Commission in Islamabad. Five support staff members will also be pulled from each High Commission.
- The staffing for each High Commission will be reduced from 55 members to 30 through further reductions by May 1.
