India has announced an immediate ban on the import of goods originating from or transiting through Pakistan, amid escalating tensions following a deadly militant attack in the disputed Kashmir region that left at least 26 tourists dead.
The move, confirmed by India’s Directorate General of Foreign Trade through an official notification, is being implemented “in the interest of national security and public policy.”
The attack occurred last week in the Pahalgam area of the Kashmir Valley, a mountainous region with a Muslim-majority population, which has long been a flashpoint in the fraught relations between the two nuclear-armed neighbours. Both India and Pakistan claim the region in full and have fought several wars over it.
India has blamed Pakistan for backing the militants responsible for the attack, an allegation Islamabad has denied. In response, Pakistan has claimed to possess “credible intelligence” that India is planning military action.
As part of its countermeasures, Pakistan has suspended all cross-border trade, closed its airspace to Indian aircraft, expelled Indian diplomats, and issued a stern warning that any attempt by India to block river water flows — protected under a longstanding bilateral treaty — would be viewed as an act of war.