From Ceasefire to Conflict: How the Pahalgam Attack Sparked Operation Sindoor and Renewed India-Pakistan Border Tensions

A breakdown of ceasefire violations, DGMO-level communication, and India’s diplomatic and military response targeting Masood Azhar’s network.

Introduction

The Pahalgam Attack: A Flashpoint Reignited

The roots of this attack tie back to the decades-long conflict between India and Pakistan. On April 22, Pakistan attacked tourists in Pahalgam, an Indian-administered Kashmir, where 25 Indian tourists and one Nepalese national were killed. The militants mainly targeted Hindu tourists. India suspended its Indus Waters Treaty, closed the Wagah-Attari border, and launched Operation Sindoor.

What is Operation Sindoor?

In the early hours of May 7, India launched Operation Sindoor. The operation involved heavy strikes at nine locations in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK). This operation aimed to punish the planners of terror and destroy their terror infrastructure.

India’s Response

Military Measures: DGMO-Level Communication

According to the Indian Army’s Director General of Military Operations (DGMO), Operation Sindoor killed more than 100 terrorists through strikes on nine terror hotspots in Pakistan and PoJK.

“They include high-value targets like Yusuf Azhar, Abdul Malik Rauf, and Mudasir Ahmed, who were involved in the hijack of IC814 and the Pulwama blast,” the DGMO told reporters in New Delhi.

According to him, Operation Sindoor was designed with the specific military goal of punishing terrorists and terrorist planners and destroying their infrastructure. To identify terror camps and training facilities, Operation Sindoor initiated a very thorough and methodical scanning of the terror environment beyond the borders. The five military personnel and civilians who died in Operation Sindoor were also honoured by the DGMO.

Diplomatic Strategy: Isolating Pakistan

India is actively pursuing diplomatic measures to isolate Pakistan internationally. This campaign is driven by accusations that Islamabad provides shelter and support to terrorist organizations such as Jaish-e-Mohammed. India’s strategy involves exposing Pakistan’s role in fostering cross-border terrorism to generate global condemnation, economic sanctions, and exclusion from important international platforms.

To achieve this, India has been engaging with key allies like the United States, France, and the United Arab Emirates to secure their support. New Delhi has also raised the issue in multilateral forums such as the United Nations, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), and the G20, emphasizing Pakistan’s inaction against terror groups operating within its borders.

Recent actions like the suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty and the closure of the Wagah-Attari border underscore India’s determination to convey a strong message through both diplomatic and symbolic means.

Strategic Actions

Suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty

The Indus Water Treaty was signed in 1960 but after this attack on the civilians, India suspended the Indus Water Treaty. Prime Minister Narendra Modi stressed the seriousness of the issue, asserting that:

“Water and blood cannot flow together,”

highlighting the irreconcilability of discussion and terrorism.

Wagah-Attari Border Closure

In the wake of this attack, India also announced the closure of Attari-Wagah border crossing. This crossing is the primary land route between India and Pakistan. It also included the revocation of visas for Pakistani nationals under the SAARC Visa Exemption Scheme.

The international border closure between the two nations immediately halted the daily flag-lowering ceremony, a symbol of potential collaboration, thus ending a symbolic connection. Cross-border trade ceased, disrupting supply chains and harming dependent businesses. Travel restrictions severed familial ties and complicated access to medical treatment, education, and family visits.

Pakistan reciprocally suspended visa services for Indian nationals, further limiting legal travel and interaction. Concurrently, Pakistan enacted the closure of its airspace to all Indian-registered aircraft, necessitating circuitous and financially burdensome deviations for international flights and disrupting air freight services.

Concurrent with the deterioration of diplomatic relations, Pakistan mandated the expulsion of Indian diplomats stationed within its borders, a decisive measure that further strained bilateral relations and impeded channels of communication and negotiation. These collective actions constituted a substantive escalation of tensions, resulting in far-reaching repercussions for the bilateral relationship and the lives of respective citizens.

Global Reactions

U.S.-Brokered Ceasefire: Reality or Facade?

A U.S.-brokered ceasefire between India and Pakistan, announced on May 10, 2025, after the Pahalgam attack and U.S. diplomatic efforts, aimed to de-escalate conflict along the Line of Control and nuclear tensions. However, violations, including explosions and drone sightings, were reported shortly after, raising concerns about the ceasefire’s durability.

International Take on Kashmir Dispute

The Kashmir territorial dispute persists as one of the most protracted and intricate conflicts globally, attracting substantial international scrutiny and apprehension. Whereas India asserts Kashmir’s integral status within its sovereign domain, Pakistan maintains it is a contested territory whose resolution should be determined by the Kashmiri populace.

The United Nations has historically adopted a neutral position, advocating restraint, bilateral negotiations, and upholding prior resolutions that endorsed a plebiscite, which India now deems obsolete.

The United States and the European Union have intermittently expressed concern regarding human rights infringements and escalating regional tensions, especially during periods of instability or military reinforcement. Nevertheless, their engagement is often confined to diplomatic initiatives, given their strategic alliances with both India and Pakistan.

The Kashmir Conflict and What Lies Ahead

Increasing Ceasefire Violations

After the Pahalgam attack, the tensions between India and Pakistan escalated, which led to the violations of the ceasefire along the Line of Control (LoC).

A U.S.-brokered ceasefire agreement was announced on May 10, but violations were reported quickly, including explosions in Srinagar and Jammu and alleged Pakistani drone sightings over Indian-administered Kashmir and Punjab. India accused Pakistan of initiating these breaches, which Pakistan denied, claiming India had violated the ceasefire in Pakistan-administered Kashmir.

Cracking Down on Masood Azhar’s Terror Web

Operation Sindoor involved precision missile strikes by India against Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) facilities in Bahawalpur, Pakistan. The operation resulted in the deaths of ten of Masood Azhar’s relatives, including his sister, nephew, and nieces, as well as high-ranking JeM operatives.

Among those killed were Abdul Rauf Azhar, Masood Azhar’s brother and a key figure in the 1999 IC-814 hijacking, and Azhar’s eldest brother-in-law. These actions are considered a significant disruption to JeM’s leadership and operational abilities. Following the strikes, Prime Minister Narendra Modi warned Pakistan that continued support for terrorism would be met with severe consequences.

Conclusion

A New Chapter in India-Pakistan Relations

Escalating tensions marked by ceasefire breaches, diplomatic expulsions, and specific military actions preceded the eventual exchange of detained individuals at the Wagah-Attari border on May 14, 2025, suggesting a possible alteration in dynamics. This unanticipated act of collaboration may serve as a nascent opportunity for a revised phase in Indo-Pakistani relations.

Conflict Resolution or Prolonged Confrontation?

The post-Pahalgam attack India-Pakistan standoff has revived a long-standing discourse concerning the potential for meaningful conflict resolution between the two nuclear-armed states versus the likelihood of protracted confrontation. Despite some diplomatic progress, exemplified by the U.S.-mediated ceasefire and limited actions such as the repatriation of detained individuals, a pervasive atmosphere of tension and inflexibility endures.

India’s resolute opposition to terrorism, evidenced by its assertive reprisal through “Operation Sindoor,” indicates a diminished tolerance for dialogue absent concrete measures from Pakistan. Conversely, Pakistan persists in denying complicity in cross-border terrorism, while simultaneously accusing India of belligerence and human rights abuses in Kashmir.

This reciprocal mistrust, augmented by unresolved territorial disputes and conflicting national narratives, perpetuates a cycle of animosity. The present juncture represents a pivotal moment: either to resolve the deadlock or to exacerbate the division. The decisions made by each nation now possess the capacity to define the trajectory of South Asia for generations.