IndoDaily Home Page
THE STANS
India, Pakistan military to confer as ceasefire holds
India, Pakistan military to confer as ceasefire holds
by AFP Staff Writers
New Delhi (AFP) May 12, 2025

Indian and Pakistani military chiefs were set to confer Monday as a ceasefire that brought the nuclear-armed rivals back from the brink of all-out war held.

US President Donald Trump announced the truce late Saturday after four days of missile, drone and artillery attacks which killed at least 60 people and sent thousands fleeing on both sides.

The phone call between the heads of military operations due at 12:00 pm (0630 GMT) comes after the Indian army reported the "first calm night in recent days" in Kashmir and along its western border with Pakistan.

Abdul Basit at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore said that the talks would be about modalities of the ceasefire and not policy decisions.

The aim is to "avoid any miscalculations, because right now one spark could quickly move towards a nuclear catastrophe," Basit told AFP.

The flare-up in violence was the worst since the rivals' last open conflict in 1999 and sparked global shudders that it could spiral into full-blown war.

There were initial doubts as the rivals accused each other of breaching the ceasefire just hours after it was unexpectedly announced by Trump on social media.

"The night remained largely peaceful across... Kashmir and other areas along the international border," the Indian army said.

"No incidents have been reported, marking the first calm night in recent days," the statement added.

It was also the second straight night without gunfire or shelling at Poonch, a frontier town in the part of divided Kashmir administered by India.

- 'Victory' claims -

Top India and Pakistan military officials held briefings late Sunday with each claiming the upper hand and warning they were ready to respond if there were fresh attacks.

"We have delivered the promise we made to our people", Pakistan's military spokesman Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry said, calling it a "success on the battleground".

"We re-established deterrence and neutralised key threats", Pakistani Air Vice Marshal Ahmed Aurangzeb told reporters.

"We have thus far exercised immense restraint so far and our actions have been focused, measured and non-escalatory," said Indian Lieutenant General Rajiv Ghai.

But he added: "Any threat to the sovereignty, territorial integrity and safety of our citizens will be met with decisive force," he added.

- 'Our worst nightmare' -

Poonch was one of the worst-hit places in India, with at least 12 residents killed and most of the estimated 60,000 residents fleeing their homes.

On Sunday, people started trickling back, although many were still jittery about the ceasefire.

Abdul Razzak returned after fleeing with four children and two other relatives on two motorbikes with nothing but their clothes.

"It was our worst nightmare... We've seen our people die around us, so none of us want a war," the 50-year-old told AFP after returning to his house.

Thousands of schools remained closed across Pakistan-administered Kashmir as areas were cleared of debris from strikes and firing, said local official Naveed-Ul-Hassan Bukhari.

The alarming spiral towards all-out conflict began before dawn on Wednesday, when India launched missile attacks destroying what it called "terrorist camps" in the Pakistani part of Kashmir.

This followed an April 22 attack on tourists in Indian-administered Kashmir, which killed 26 civilians.

India accused Pakistan of backing the attack but Islamabad denied involvement and immediately responded to the strikes with heavy artillery fire.

It claimed to have downed five Indian fighter jets -- something New Delhi has not commented on.

Militants have stepped up operations in Kashmir since 2019, when Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Hindu nationalist government revoked the region's limited autonomy and took it under direct rule from New Delhi.

Divided Muslim-majority Kashmir is claimed in full by both countries, who have fought several wars over the territory since their independence from Britain in 1947.

Related Links
News From Across The Stans

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters
Tweet

RELATED CONTENT
The following news reports may link to other Space Media Network websites.
THE STANS
India warns Pakistan attacks will get 'firm response' after trading fire for another day
New Delhi (AFP) May 8, 2025
India warned Thursday any Pakistan military action would be met with "a very, very firm response", a day after New Delhi launched missile strikes in retaliation for an attack it blames on Islamabad. "Our response was targeted and measured. It (is) not our intention to escalate the situation," Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar said in a speech to his visiting Iranian counterpart. "However, if there are military attacks on us, there should be no doubt that it will be met with a very, very f ... read more

THE STANS
Japanese military training plane crashes with two on board

Sri Lanka Air Force helicopter crashes, killing six

Rights groups urge court to halt UK fighter jet supplies to Israel

Trump says would be 'stupid' to reject Qatari Air Force One gift

THE STANS
Baidu plans self-driving taxi tests in Europe this year

AI-Driven Microgrid Control Enhances Renewable Stability and EV Integration

EV sales to continue growing despite trade uncertainty: IEA

EU parliament backs emissions reprieve for carmakers

THE STANS
EU targets conservation red tape to speed up renewables permits

UK lab promises air-con revolution without polluting gases

Indians buy 14 million ACs a year, and need many more

How can India decarbonize its coal-dependent electric power system?

THE STANS
Dongguk University Researchers Develop Scalable Zinc-Ion Battery Technology for Industrial Use

Chinese EV battery giant CATL aims to raise $4 bn in Hong Kong IPO

Fusion modeling breakthrough accelerates stellarator design and confinement accuracy

UT Austin researchers advance magnetic fusion design with new confinement method

THE STANS
EU asks Prague to hold off on S.Korean nuclear deal

Ontario Approves Construction of GE Vernova Hitachi's BWRX-300 Small Modular Reactor

Google agrees to fund three US nuclear plants

EDF complaint blocks Czech-Korean nuclear deal

THE STANS
Flavor Symmetry Anomaly Detected in High-Energy Nuclear Collisions

New Insights into Antineutrino Mass from Silver Isotope Discovery

New models challenge the black hole singularity concept

MIT physicists snap the first images of "free-range" atoms

THE STANS
'Panic and paralysis': US firms fret despite China tariff reprieve

Colombia joins Belt and Road initiative as China courts Latin America

Kazakhstan to dredge port for key China-EU trade route

Stock markets fluctuate as China-US trade euphoria fades

THE STANS
India, Pakistan ceasefire holds after early violations

Outside mediation now crucial for Pakistan and India

India warns Pakistan attacks will get 'firm response' after trading fire for another day

India, Pakistan military to confer as ceasefire holds

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.