ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Monday dismissed India’s accusation about an attack in Indian-administered Kashmir, saying “no shred of evidence” had been shared by New Delhi even after a week of the killing of over two dozen tourists in Pahalgam.
New Delhi accused Pakistan of backing the deadliest attack in Indian-administered Kashmir since 2000 that killed 26 tourists on April 22. Islamabad has denied the Indian claims. Both countries have announced a series of punitive measures against each other amid heightened tensions over the attack.
Last week, Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said the tragic incident in Pahalgam was yet another example of New Delhi’s “perpetual blame game” that must come to a halt, adding that Islamabad was “open to participate in any neutral, transparent and credible investigation.”
On Tuesday, Lt. Gen. Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, a spokesman of the Pakistani military, briefed local and foreign media journalists in Islamabad about the situation after the Pahalgam attack, describing the Indian allegations against Pakistan as “baseless.”
“Seven days have passed since Pahalgam incident, but so far, there has been no shred of evidence that has been provided to support the baseless allegations being made against Pakistan,” he said.
A day after the attack, India suspended the World Bank-mediated Indus Waters Treaty of 1960 that ensures water for 80 percent of Pakistani farms, saying it would last until “Pakistan credibly and irrevocably abjures its support for cross-border terrorism.” Islamabad described India’s move as an “act of war” and closed the Pakistani airspace for India airlines among other tit-for-tat moves.
Tensions remain heightened between the two nuclear-armed neighbors amid fears that India may conduct limited airstrikes or special forces raids near its border with Pakistan. There have also been reports of crossfire between the two border forces along their de facto border in the disputed Kashmir region.
Chaudhry said there would be a detailed briefing into the post-Pahalgam attack situation and that India had mobilized a “terror network inside Pakistan, in which explosives, IEDs and other materials are being provided to terrorists to target not only [Pakistani] military but innocent civilians.”
The military spokesman showed purported audio clips, screenshots of WhatsApp conversations between Indian handlers of the network and their operatives in Pakistan as well as receipts of payment transfers, which could not be independently verified.
Pakistan and India have fought multiple wars, including two of them over Kashmir, since their independence from British rule in 1947. Both rule the region in part but claim it in full.
Amid heightened tensions, the United Nations (UN) and several countries, including China, Saudi Arabia, Iran and Egypt, have called on both sides to exercise restraint and resolve the latest crisis through dialogue.
Pakistan army says ‘no shred of evidence’ shared by India even week after Kashmir attack
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Pakistan army says ‘no shred of evidence’ shared by India even week after Kashmir attack
- New Delhi accused Pakistan of backing the deadliest attack in Indian-administered Kashmir since 2000 that killed 26 tourists on April 22
- Islamabad denies the claim and Pakistan PM Sharif last week said they were open to participate in any ‘neutral and credible investigation’
Pakistani, Bangladeshi officials discuss trade, investment and aviation as ties thaw
- Pakistan and Bangladesh were once one nation, but they split in 1971 as a result of a bloody civil war
- Ties between Pakistan, Bangladesh have warmed up since last year and both nations have resumed sea trade
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's High Commissioner to Bangladesh Imran Haider on Sunday met Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus in Dhaka, the latter's office said on, with the two figures discussing trade, investment and aviation.
Pakistan and Bangladesh were once one nation, but they split in 1971 as a result of a bloody civil war, which saw the part previously referred to as East Pakistan seceding to form the independent nation of Bangladesh.
Ties between Pakistan and Bangladesh have warmed up since former prime minister Sheikh Hasina’s ouster as a result of a student-led uprising in August 2024. Relations remain frosty between Dhaka and New Delhi over India’s decision to grant asylum to Hasina.
Pakistan has attempted to forge closer ties with Bangladesh in recent months and both South Asian nations last year began sea trade, followed by efforts to expand government-to-government commerce.
"During the meeting, both sides discussed ways to expand cooperation in trade, investment, and aviation as well as scaling up cultural, educational and medical exchanges to further strengthen bilateral relations between the two South Asian nations," Yunus's office said in a statement on X.
In 2023-24 Pakistan exported goods worth $661 million to Bangladesh, while its imports were only $57 million, according to the Trade Development Authority of Pakistan. In Aug. this year, the Pakistani and Bangladeshi commerce ministries signed a memorandum of understanding to establish a Joint Working Group on Trade, aiming to raise their bilateral trade volume to $1 billion in the financial year that began in July.
The Pakistani high commissioner noted that bilateral trade has recorded a 20 percent growth compared to last year, with business communities from both countries actively exploring new investment opportunities, according to the statement.
He highlighted a significant increase in cultural exchanges, adding that Bangladeshi students have shown strong interest in higher education opportunities in Pakistan, particularly in medical sciences, nanotechnology, and artificial intelligence. Haider also said that Dhaka-Karachi direct flights are expected to start in January.
"Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus welcomed the growing interactions between the two countries and emphasized the importance of increased visits as well as cultural, educational and people-to-people exchanges among SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) member states," the statement read.
"Professor Yunus also underscored the need to further boost Bangladesh–Pakistan trade and expressed hope that during Mr. Haider’s tenure, both countries would explore new avenues for investment and joint venture businesses."
