J-K terror attack: Pakistan Deputy PM Ishaq Dar calls Pahalgam attackers 'freedom fighters'

Tensions between India and Pakistan have reached a new high following a terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam district on April 22, which killed 26 people, mostly tourists. The situation worsened after Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar referred to the attackers as "freedom fighters".

Dar made this controversial statement on April 24, saying those involved in the attack "might be freedom fighters", according to News18. India strongly condemned the remarks, especially after investigations linked the attack to Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and its proxy group, The Resistance Front (TRF), both based in Pakistan.

In response, India has taken a series of tough diplomatic steps. On April 23, during a Cabinet Committee on Security meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India downgraded diplomatic ties with Pakistan. The government expelled Pakistani military attachés, suspended the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty, and shut down the Attari land transit post.

India also announced that all visas issued to Pakistani nationals will be revoked starting April 27. Medical visas will only be valid until April 29. Indian citizens in Pakistan have been advised to return home immediately. The Ministry of External Affairs said all Pakistani nationals in India must leave before their visas expire.

Reacting to these actions, Pakistan called the suspension of the water treaty an "act of war". Dar warned that "240 million people in Pakistan need water" and stopping it "will not be accepted". He added that Pakistan will respond in kind to what it sees as India’s aggression.

Pakistan’s National Security Committee, led by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, echoed this sentiment, saying any interference with water flow or treaty rights would be treated as an act of war.

As part of its retaliation, Pakistan has suspended diplomatic ties with India, asked Indian security and military advisors to leave by April 30, ended the Simla Agreement, shut its airspace to Indian airlines, and stopped all trade with India.