Pakistan's top brass to meet today to plan response to India's action over Pahalgam attack
Pakistan's move to hold a meeting comes after India announced punitive actions against Islamabad following the deadly terror attack in J&K's Pahalgam.
Pakistan's defence minister Khawaja Asif on Wednesday said that the country's top civilian and military leadership will hold a meeting on Thursday to come up with an appropriate response to India's five big moves against Islamabad, including the suspension of the Indus Water Treaty.
A day after a terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam killed 26 people, mostly civilians, the Indian government announced massive punitive actions against Pakistan. The Centre put in abeyance the Indus Water Treaty with immediate effect, closed the integrated check post at the Attari border and downgraded diplomatic ties with Islamabad.
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‘Response to Indian steps’
Asif, in a statement, said, "A session of the National Security Committee will be held under the chair of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif," adding that the decision taken there will be to give "an appropriate response to the Indian steps".
Thursday's meeting in Islamabad would be attended by all services chiefs and key cabinet ministers, a news agency PTI report said. Notably, such meetings are held a time when issues related to national security are to be discussed.
In New Delhi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi returned early on Wednesday after cutting short his state visit to Saudi Arabia in view of the terror attack in Pahalgam. Upon his return, he chaired a high-level meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS).
A government statement said that the cross-border linkages of the terrorist attack were brought out. "It was noted that this attack came in the wake of the successful holding of elections in the Union Territory and its steady progress towards economic growth and development," it added.
ALSO READ | Kashmir shuts down after years, this time to protest Pahalgam terror attack
Other the suspension of the Indus Water Treaty and closure of the integrated check post at Attari border, India also announced that Pakistani nationals will not be permitted to travel to the country under the SAARC Visa Exemption Scheme (SVES) visas. Any Pakistani national under this visa has to leave India within 48 hours.
Additionally, all the defence advisors in the Pakistani High Commission in New Delhi have also been declared Persona Non Grata, and have been given a week's time to leave the country. The overall strength of the high commissions will also be brought down to 30 from the current 55, to come into effect by May 1.
Notably, the Resistance Front (TRF) a shadow outfit of the banned Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba, has claimed responsibility for the attack in Pahalgam.
(with PTI inputs)
