Pakistan Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif on Monday claimed that an Indian military strike was imminent after a deadly terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam last week left 26 people, mostly tourists dead, sharply escalating tensions between the two nuclear-armed rivals.
The attack has sparked an outrage in India, with demands for swift retaliation against Islamabad, which New Delhi accuses of harbouring terrorists on its soil.
“We have reinforced our forces because it is something which is imminent now. So, in that situation some strategic decisions have to be taken, so those decisions have been taken,” Asif told news agency Reuters.
Further in his conversation, the minister said the Pakistani military had briefed the government about the possibility of an Indian attack, though he did not specify what intelligence or developments led to this assessment.
“Pakistan is on high alert and it would only use its arsenal of nuclear weapons if there is a direct threat to our existence,” Asif added.
