After terrorist attack on tourists: India expels all Pakistani citizens from the country

India - Following the deadly attack on tourists in the Indian-controlled part of Kashmir , India has ordered the expulsion of all Pakistani nationals by April 29. Pakistan has now also reacted.

After the deadly attack in Kashmir, India expels all Pakistani citizens from the country.
After the deadly attack in Kashmir, India expels all Pakistani citizens from the country.  © Tauseef MUSTAFA / AFP

"All Pakistani nationals currently in India must leave India before their visas expire," the Ministry of External Affairs declared in New Delhi on Thursday.

After Tuesday's attack, which left at least 26 people dead, New Delhi claimed that Pakistan was supporting "cross-border terrorism" in Kashmir.

In the dispute over the deadly attack on tourists in the Kashmir region, Pakistan has expelled Indian diplomats and announced further punitive measures against New Delhi.

On Thursday, the government in Islamabad declared several Indian diplomats as undesirable persons who must leave the country "immediately", according to the office of Pakistan's head of government Shehbaz Sharif.

In addition, all visas for Indian citizens except for Sikh pilgrims are to be canceled, the border is to be closed and trade suspended.

Numerous dead in terrorist attack in Pahalgam

Indian security officials inspect the site in Pahalgam where militants opened indiscriminate fire on tourists on Tuesday.
Indian security officials inspect the site in Pahalgam where militants opened indiscriminate fire on tourists on Tuesday.  © Uncredited/AP/dpa

The attack took place on Tuesday in the Indian-controlled part of Kashmir in the popular vacation resort of Pahalgam, which is around 90 kilometers from the city of Srinagar. The attackers killed 26 Indians and one Nepalese.

No one initially claimed responsibility for the attack. India regularly accuses Pakistan of supporting armed insurgents in Kashmir, which Pakistan rejects.

As a result of the attack, relations between the two nuclear powers, which have been rivals for decades, have sunk to a new low. "This attack will take relations back to the dark days," said International Crisis Group analyst Praveen Donthi.

The northern Himalayan region of Kashmir, which is inhabited by a majority of Muslims, has been divided between India and Pakistan since independence in 1947. Both countries claim the area completely for themselves and have already fought two wars for control of the mountain region.

India has stationed half a million soldiers in the region and has been fighting rebel groups there since 1989. Tens of thousands of civilians, soldiers and rebels have been killed in the process.

Original article from 1 p.m., last updated at 2.24 p.m.