Trump says India, Pakistan agree to ‘full and immediate ceasefire’

Trump says India, Pakistan agree to ‘full and immediate ceasefire’

India’s Modi convenes top military, security officials

India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi has held a high-level meeting with his top military and security officials, including Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, amid the conflict with Pakistan.

National security adviser Ajit Doval and the chiefs of the army, navy and air force were also in attendance.

Modi’s office has not divulged details of the meeting, but it comes after Pakistan used missiles and drones to hit India overnight.

‘People in Srinagar panicked after blasts’

Journalist Umar Mehraj, reporting from Srinagar in Indian-administered Kashmir, says the two loud explosions heard in the city earlier left locals in a state of panic.

He said the blasts “were heard when shops and businesses were opening”, adding that there was not yet an official explanation as to what had happened.

“Many people say they have never witnessed such large explosions in their lives … Saturday’s blasts were louder and more intense than the ones heard on Friday,” he added.

Mehraj stressed that people living in the neighbourhoods close to military installations in the city are particularly worried as they believe they could be hit in the ongoing conflict.

“They fear that they don’t have any safety facilities, such as bunkers, in case of more attacks,” he said. “What we are witnessing on the ground is very unusual.”

Pakistan hit Indian sites, avenged blood of innocents: PM Sharif

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif says Pakistan’s armed forces “responded strongly and powerfully to Indian aggression today in a coordinated manner”.

He claimed Pakistan’s attacks “specifically targeted Indian military installations from which attacks on Pakistan had been launched”, according to a statement.

“Today we have given a befitting response to India and avenged the blood of innocents,” Sharif said, confirming Pakistan’s missile and drone attacks.

Dangerous scenes as attacks escalate

Kamal Hyder, Reporting from Islamabad, Pakistan

Pakistan decided to launch a massive retaliation last night after the Indian strikes following the Pahalgam attack.

It has certainly been a dangerous scene since last night, with the exchange of artillery fire between the two sides, with more than 10 killed and 50 wounded reported on the Pakistani side for now.

Passengers and travellers are stuck because all flights are suspended, and schools are closed. Of course, there is an economic impact from all of this.

People in Pakistan feel that if there is an all-out war between the two countries, it will be the common people who will be on the receiving end, and they will suffer catastrophic consequences.

‘Neither side wants to engage in a nuclear conflict’

Military analyst Sean Bell says both Pakistan and India “want to appear very robust” in the conflict, trying to send messages to their public that they are in control of the situation.

“Therefore, sometimes their reporting is a little bit less accurate than we would like,” the retired British air vice marshal told Al Jazeera, referring to past instances of fighting.

Bell said, nevertheless, the latest round of conflict between the two countries appears to be “more kinetic” than before with more weapons used by the two sides against each other.

He also highlighted that technological developments such as the widespread use of mobile phones and the development of social media allow the world to see more of the conflict compared with the past.

Bell also said that none of the arch-enemies would like to engage in a nuclear conflict.

“There would be no winners in a nuclear conflict,” he stressed.

World powers urge India and Pakistan to show restraint

Um-E-Kulsoom Shariff, Reporting from New Delhi, India

Both India and Pakistan seem to be talking about de-escalation of the conflict.

We heard the Indian army saying this morning they do not want to escalate.

And at all points, India has taken a stance that they have only been responding to attacks from the Pakistani side.

Of course, there is international pressure on both countries, looking at ways to de-escalate.

In addition to the US, countries such as Russia, China, Malaysia, Iran and Saudi Arabia have been telling Pakistan and India to show restraint.

Indian opposition MP criticises IMF loan to Pakistan

Gaurav Gogoi, a lawmaker with India’s opposition Congress party, says the International Monetary Fund’s approval of a loan to Pakistan after the Pahalgam attack is “shocking and disappointing”.

“The loan will only perpetuate the rule of the army over the state,” the deputy leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha claimed in a social media post.

Late on Friday, the IMF’s executive board approved a new $1.4bn loan to Pakistan under its climate resilience fund and freed about $1bn in cash after a first successful review of a previous larger loan programme.

‘China’s role in India-Pakistan conflict is fascinating’

Military analyst Sean Bell says China’s role in the India-Pakistan conflict is “fascinating”.

“It appears India has lost some of its fighter jets,” Bell said. “It initially denied any losses, but there has been more and more credible evidence that they have lost some.”

He said media reports suggest a Chinese-made Pakistani warplane shot down one of India’s French-made Rafale jets.

“China rarely demonstrates its prowess on the military stage,” the analyst added.

“If this is true, that the export versions of their (Chinese) missiles shot down a Western aircraft”, it was “a worrying trend for the West”, Bell said.

Pakistan’s retaliation in line with UN Charter: Information minister

Pakistan’s Information Minister Attaullah Tarar has made the following comments in an interview with the BBC:

India targeted civilian populations inside Pakistan.
    
Pakistan is a responsible country that responded to India’s attacks in accordance with the UN Charter.
    
We did not target any civilian population inside India, and reject India’s accusations.
    
Our actions were in the exercise of our right to self-defence.
    
There is no evidence of Pakistan’s involvement in the Pahalgam incident.
    
India registered an FIR (first information report) just 10 minutes after the incident, making the Pahalgam case suspicious.

What happened during the Pahalgam attack?

In our previous update, we brought you the comments of Pakistan’s information minister, who mentioned, among other things, the attack in Pahalgam nearly three weeks ago – so here’s a quick reminder about what happened then:

At about 2:45pm (09:15 GMT) on April 22, 2025 armed men in camouflage clothes emerged from a nearby forest in the famous resort town in Indian-administered Kashmir.
    
The attackers opened indiscriminate fire at Baisaran meadow, a scenic uphill area accessible only by foot or pony rides, and caught victims, mostly tourists, off guard, according to officials.
    
At least 25 Indian nationals and one Nepalese citizen were killed – the deadliest such attack in a quarter-century in the region.
    
India swiftly blamed Pakistan for the attack, an allegation the latter denied.

India, Pakistan drift towards all-out as war as they target military bases: All to know

Abid Hussain, Reporting from Islamabad, Pakistan

Pakistan has accused India of carrying out attacks inside its territory for the fourth consecutive night, launching ballistic missile strikes on at least three air bases.

Islamabad said that in response, it launched a major military campaign, “Operation Bunyan Marsoos” (Arabic for “a structure made of lead”) targeting at least six Indian military bases.

India, in turn, accused Pakistan of being the aggressor. Indian military officials claimed Pakistan had targeted several Indian military bases and that its missiles into Pakistani territory were in response.

Yet, regardless of who hit the other first on May 10, the very fact that India and Pakistan had struck each other’s military bases over such a wide swath of territory, well beyond Kashmir – a disputed region that they each partly control – means that the conflict has now veered into almost unknown territory.

Never have the South Asian rivals attacked each other on this scale outside the four wars they have fought.

Pakistan left with no option but to defend sovereignty: President

President Asif Ali Zardari says Pakistan was left with no choice but to “respond decisively” to defend its sovereignty and protect its citizens.

The entire nation is united and fully supports its armed forces “in the face of Indian aggression”, he said, according to a statement released by his Pakistan People’s Party on X after PM Sharif met Zardari at his official residence.

Zardari called Pakistan “a responsible and peace-loving nation” which has shown “considerable restraint in the face of Indian provocations”.

He praised the “extraordinary professional expertise and bravery of the country’s armed forces in delivering a befitting response” to India.

G7 foreign ministers call for ‘immediate de-escalation’

Foreign ministers from the Group of Seven major powers have issued a statement over the clashes between India and Pakistan.

In a joint statement, they condemned the April 22 attack in Pahalgam in the Indian-administered Kashmir that killed 26 people and triggered the current outbreak of violence, while warning that further escalation threatened regional stability.

“We are deeply concerned for the safety of civilians on both sides,” they said. “We call for immediate de-escalation and encourage both countries to engage in direct dialogue towards a peaceful outcome.”

The G7 members are Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the UK and the US, along with the European Union.

Indian-administered Kashmir to pay families of those killed in Pakistan shelling

The government in Indian-administered Kashmir has announced it will pay one million rupees ($11,700) each to the families of people killed as a result of shelling from Pakistan as a “gesture of support and solidarity”.

“Deeply pained by the loss of innocent lives due to recent shelling from Pakistan,” the region’s Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said in a post on X.

“My government is taking every possible measure to minimise the hardships of our people.”

Trump says India, Pakistan agree to ‘full and immediate ceasefire’

In a post on his Truth Social site, US President Donald Trump says India and Pakistan have agreed to a “full and immediate ceasefire”.

There was no immediate comment from India or Pakistan.

Here’s what Trump wrote in full: “After a long night of talks mediated by the United States, I am pleased to announce that India and Pakistan have agreed to a FULL AND IMMEDIATE CEASEFIRE.

“Congratulations to both Countries on using Common Sense and Great Intelligence. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”