Amid heightened tensions with India following the Pahalgam terrorist attack that left at least 26 innocent civilians dead, Pakistan is said to be preparing to test fire surface-to-surface ballistic missiles, a move seen by New Delhi as a “reckless act of provocation and a dangerous escalation in its hostile campaign against India.”
According to an ANI news report, the planned missile test has been dubbed by government sources “a desperate attempt to whip up tensions with India.”
The hostilities between India and Pakistan have intensified since the April 22 terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir. Pakistani forces have been violating the ceasefire along the Line of Control (LoC) almost daily, with Indian military retaliating strongly to the provocation.
After the Pahalgam attack, India announced several punitive measures against Pakistan for its role in supporting and funding cross-border terrorism.
The diplomatic measures included downgrading of diplomatic ties, suspension of Indian visas for Pakistani nationals and closure of the Attari border. India also suspended the Indus Water Treaty with Pakistan, a move termed by Islamabad as an “act of war”.
Pakistan is also fearing Indian military action in response to the Pahalgam attack, in which at least two Pakistani terrorists, including former Pak Army commando Hasim Moosa, were involved.
While India has vowed to punish the Pahalgam attackers, their backers and the planners of the attack, it has not revealed what kind of response is being planned.
However, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given complete operational freedom to the armed forces to decide on their response.
At least 26 people — mostly tourists from across the country — were killed in the Pahalgam attack, one of the largest targeting civilians in decades. A local and a Nepali national were also among the deceased.
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