- Jubilation at a ceasefire between India and Pakistan has been short-lived, with reports of explosions and gunfire in several cities in Indian-administered Kashmir.
- India’s Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri accuses Pakistan of “repeated violations” of the truce, and said the Indian military has been instructed to “deal strongly” with any breaches.
- In response, Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry says it “remains committed” to the ceasefire agreement with India and blames India for the violations.
- More than 60 people have been reported killed on both sides of the Line of Control (LoC), the de facto border between the two countries dividing the disputed Kashmir region, since India launched missiles under “Operation Sindoor” on Wednesday
- India has said it was responding to an attack that killed 26 tourists in Pahalgam on April 22, which it blamed on Pakistan-based armed groups.
What are India and Pakistan’s military capabilities?
The India-Pakistan ceasefire has increased hope that the two nuclear-armed countries can step back from the brink of full-scale war.
Such a conflict could be devastating to the region.
While India’s military is far larger than Pakistan’s, both are estimated to have similar numbers of missiles with nuclear warheads.
Both countries are also major arms importers. From 2020 to 2024, India was the second-largest importer in the world, behind Ukraine, getting the largest share of its weapons from Russia.
Pakistan was the fifth-largest importer during that time, getting most weapons from China.
Read our breakdown of both countries’ military capabilities here.
India’s Amritsar ‘still on red alert’
Authorities in the Indian city of Amritsar have issued a red alert, warning residents to stay indoors and away from windows, amid the continued tensions between India and Pakistan.
In a statement, Amritsar’s district collector said the power supply in the city had been restored, “but we are still on red alert”, according to the ANI news agency.
“Please don’t move out of your house; stay indoors and away from windows. We will be informing you when we get the green signal. Please ensure compliance and please don’t panic,” the statement said.
Amritsar is located in the northwestern Indian state of Punjab, about 30km (19 miles) from the border with Pakistan. Blasts had previously been heard there on Friday.
AIndus Waters Treaty remains suspended despite truce: Report
The Reuters news agency, citing four government sources, is reporting that the key water-sharing pact between India and Pakistan remains suspended despite the ceasefire agreement on Saturday.
India had pulled out of the pact, which regulates the division of water from the Indus River and its tributaries, after blaming Pakistan for the deadly attack targeting Hindu tourists in Pahalgam.
An Indian government source told Reuters there was “no change in stand” on the treaty, while another source from Pakistan’s water ministry was quoted as saying, “Indus Waters Treaty was not really a part of [ceasefire] discussions”.
Indian sources also told Reuters that other punitive measures, such as trade suspension and visa cancellations, would remain in place for now.
OIC calls for dialogue to resolve India, Pakistan disputes
The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has released a statement saying it welcomes the truce and appreciates the “efforts of intermediary countries”.
“We call on the international community to encourage Pakistan and India to engage in constructive dialogue to resolve outstanding issues,” said the OIC, which represents 57 states.
“We stress the need for a peaceful resolution of the Jammu and Kashmir issue in accordance with Security Council resolutions to avoid tension between two nuclear powers in South Asia,” the statement added.
“We are concerned about the military escalation in South Asia and call for restraint and the avoidance of destabilising the region.”
How did the fighting begin?
- The countries have fought several wars over the territory, which both claim in full, but administer separate portions of Kashmir since gaining independence from British rule in 1947.
- The ceasefire comes after four days of attacks and counter-attacks by both sides that has killed more than 60 people and forced thousands of civilians flee their homes along their border as well as in divided Kashmir.
- The fighting was touched off by an attack last month in the Indian-administered side of Kashmir that killed 26 tourists, mostly Hindu men, which New Delhi blamed on Islamabad.
- India accused the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba – a UN-designated terrorist organisation – of carrying out the attack, but Islamabad has denied any involvement and called for an independent probe.
- Armed groups have stepped up attacks in Kashmir since 2019, when Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu-nationalist government revoked its limited autonomy and took the state under direct rule from New Delhi.
EU’s top diplomat welcomes ceasefire
Kaja Kallas says she spoke with both India’s External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar after the ceasefire was announced.
She described the deal as “a vital step toward de-escalation” and said “all efforts must be made to ensure it is respected”.
“The EU remains committed to peace, stability, and counter-terrorism in the region,” she said.
India accuses Pakistan of violating truce
The optimism around the ceasefire was shortlived because India is now accusing Pakistan of violating the ceasefire.
Just hours before, both countries had agreed to a land, sea and air ceasefire.
Then, the chief minister of Indian-administered Kashmir, Omar Abdullah, tweeted to say that there were drones spotted. He said there have been explosions in Jammu and Srinagar, and asked what has happened to the ceasefire?
And India’s Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri has reacted, accusing Pakistan of violating the ceasefire, and saying the Indian armed forces have remained vigilant and have been asked to respond to any violations appropriately.
The ceasefire announcement itself was sudden.
It was announced by US President Donald Trump during the day, saying that India and Pakistan had agreed to the ceasefire and details of it would be worked out.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that both countries would hold talks in a more neutral place.
Well, of course, there’s no official word whether India has agreed to those talks. What we know, the official word is India agreed to the ceasefire, and now India is accusing Pakistan of those ceasefire violations.
A recap of recent developments
- Loud explosions have been heard in Srinagar, in Indian-administered Kashmir, hours after India and Pakistan agreed to an immediate ceasefire following days of deadly cross-border attacks.
- India’s Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri accuses Pakistan of violating the understanding arrived at by the two countries, and says the Indian armed forces have been instructed to “deal strongly” with any repetition.
- In response, Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry says the country was committed to the ceasefire and blames India for the violations.
- Earlier, politicians and residents of India and Pakistan, as well as the areas in Kashmir that each country administers, welcomed the news of the ceasefire, which was first announced by US President Donald Trump.
- US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has commended Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Pakistan’s Shehbaz Sharif on the agreement, and said the deal also included the start of talks on “a broad set of issues at a neutral site”.
- Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar has said that more than 30 countries had helped to facilitate that agreement.
Welcome to our live coverage
Hello, and thank you for joining our coverage of tensions between India and Pakistan after the deadly attack in Pahalgam in Indian-administered Kashmir last month.
Follow this page for up-to-the-minute updates on the latest developments, along with context and analysis.
You can find all our updates from Saturday, May 10, here.