India and Pakistan – two nuclear-armed neighbours – who were teetering on the brink of an all-out war after a dramatic escalation of strikes today have now agreed to a ceasefire.
The announcement was first made by Donald Trump, who wrote on Truth Social: ‘Congratulations to both Countries on using Common Sense and Great Intelligence. Thank you for your attention to this matter!’
Both nations confirmed the ceasefire deal following the US mediation.
Medium-range Fateh missiles were unleashed towards at least 25 military sites in India, including airbases and weapons depots in the Indian states of Gujarat, Punjab, Rajasthan and India-administered Kashmir.
The strikes – part of the newly-launched military operation, named Bunyan-un-Marsoos, meaning ‘solid wall of steel’ – were in response to attacks on Pakistani territory this week.
Shortly afterwards, India targeted multiple military bases in Pakistan, citing ‘blatant escalation with drone strikes and other munitions’ along the western borders.
Overnight, Indian and Pakistani troops also exchanged artillery and gunfire along the Line of Control that divides the disputed Kashmir region.
Pakistan’s disaster authority confirmed that 13 civilians have been killed and more than 50 injured in Kashmir in past 12 hours.
The heavy cross-border violence escalate the volatile standoff sparked by last month’s attack on tourists by five armed militants near Pahalgam in the Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir, in which 26 civilians were killed.
Both nations have signalled a willingness to de-escalate if the other halts further aggression.
People try to board an overcrowded train as they leave the city at the Jammu Tawi railway station (Picture: AFP)
Yet, military mobilisations on the border and a retaliatory rhetoric suggest a deepening crisis with no clear cut-off.
Former Pakistan national security adviser, Moeed Yusuf, warned that ‘we are on the brink of an all-out war’.
He told SkyNews: ‘This is not a good situation, the world must wake up to the reality that two nuclear powers are on the brink of an all-out war.’
Yusuf claimed Pakistan ‘never wanted to escalate’ tensions and said now is the time for the two sides to ‘sit down and talk’.
He added: ‘I think the view in Pakistan is that enough is enough. We are not sacrificial lambs, we will stand up. If India does not respond now, I am sure Pakistan will say thank you, that is it.’
Hours after carrying out strikes on India, Pakistan’s foreign minister, Ishaq Dar, said his country would consider de-escalation if India stopped further attacks.
Earlier, he told Pakistan’s Geo News: ‘We responded because our patience had reached its limit. If they stop here, we will also consider stopping.’
Prime minister Shehbaz Sharif also told his country’s political leaders ‘we have given India a befitting response’.
Indian Civil Defence volunteers and security personnel stand outside a damaged house after cross-border shelling from Pakistan, at Jammu town in Jammu and Kashmir (Picture: EPA)
India has also said it is committed to ‘non-escalation’, providing that rival forces reciprocated.
Wing Commander Vyomika Singh warned: ‘Indian armed forces remain in a high state of operational readiness.’
US secretary of state Marco Rubio spoke to Pakistan’s army chief Asim Munir on Friday to offer American assistance ‘in starting constructive talks in order to avoid future conflicts’.
He spoke to his Indian counterpart S Jaishankar, stressing that ‘both sides need to identify methods to de-escalate and re-establish direct communication to avoid miscalculation,’ State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said Saturday.
Villagers use sacks filled with sand to protectively surround parts of a projectile intercepted by the Indian Army in Wadala Bhattewad village near Amritsar, India, Saturday, May 10, 2025 (Picture: AP)
The Group of Seven (G7) major economies had earlier called for maximum restraint from India and Pakistan, urging the neighbours to engage in direct dialogue.
‘Further military escalation poses a serious threat to regional stability. We are deeply concerned for the safety of civilians on both sides,’ according to the statement, which was posted in the official website of the government of Canada, a member of the G7.
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