India-Pak tensions raise fears of fullblown conflict

India's air strikes and Pakistan's vows to counterattack, coupled with the ever-present risk of miscalculation, have raised fears that the situation could snowball into a full-fledged military conflict.

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Tensions between South Asian arch-rivals India and Pakistan have escalated sharply this week as New Delhi launched aerial strikes on targets inside Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir.

India's action was in response to a deadly attack last month on tourists in the scenic town of Pahalgam in India-administered Kashmir, in which 26 people — mainly Hindu men — were killed.

The attack was claimed by a group calling itself the Kashmir Resistance, which India says is also known as The Resistance Front and is linked to Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), a UN-designated terrorist organization.

New Delhi blamed Islamabad for backing the attack, an allegation Pakistan denies.

An Indian response was widely expected as Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government was under intense public, political and media pressure domestically to retaliate.

Despite the massive pressure, the government took enough time to carefully plan and execute its response.