Pahalgam aftermath: After New Delhi suspends visa services for Pak citizens, Islamabad closes air space for Indian planes

India on Thursday announced suspending visa services to citizens of Pakistan with immediate effect. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said all existing valid visas issued to Pakistani nationals stand revoked with effect from April 27. Medical visas issued to Pakistani nationals will be valid only till April 29, New Delhi confirmed. 

 

 

Islamabad, in a tit-for-tat response, decided against allotting visas to Indian citizens until further notice.  Any threat to Pakistan's sovereignty and security will be met with firm reciprocal measures in all domains, a statement read after a meeting of Pakistan’s National Security Committee (NSC) — the top security body of the country.

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Pakistan has reportedly closed in air space for Indian planes and has closed the Wagah border after the MEA asked all Pakistani nationals currently in India to leave before the expiry of visas. The government has advised all Indians in Pakistan to return home at the earliest in the backdrop of the Pahalgam terror attack. Meanwhile, some television reports claimed that all Indians in Pakistan have been asked to exit country within 48 hours.

The series of measures is to counter the “reckless and irresponsible behaviour of India, which disregards international conventions, UN Security Council Resolutions and international obligations at will,” the statement released after the NSC meet reportedly read.

 

Earlier on  Wednesday, New Delhi had expelled Pakistani military attaches and suspended the Indus Water Treaty. The measures against Pakistan were decided at a meeting of Cabinet Committee on Security headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, news agency PTI reported. 

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Terrorists targeted non-Muslim tourists at Baisaran meadow in Pahalgam on Tuesday, gunning down 25 Indian nationals and a Nepali citizen. Several were injured in the gruesome attack which is one of the deadliest attacks in the valley since the 2019 Pulwama strike in which 40 CRPF jawans were killed.

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