Pahalgam attack: 'Nothing to do with it', Pakistan claims; Delhi skeptical

Amid widespread global condemnation, Pakistan on Wednesday (April 23) distanced itself from the terrorist carnage in Jammu and Kashmir which killed 26 civilians in the worst such massacre in India since 2008.

A day after the terror attack in Pahalgam, Pakistan defence minister Khwaja Asif said Islamabad had nothing to do with the gruesome terrorist attack.

Indian officials, however, are not convinced by Pakistan’s denial as the initial investigation has suggested that foreign nationals were part of the group of militants who opened fire at the civilians.

Statements by victims and eyewitnesses have spoken of four terrorists, and said two of them were “foreign nationals”. They were all clad in camouflage attire.

According to news reports, Asif told a Pakistani TV channel: “We have absolutely nothing to do with it. We reject terrorism in all its forms and everywhere.”

A spokesperson for Pakistan’s foreign ministry added: “We are concerned at the loss of tourists’ lives… We extend our condolences to the near ones of the deceased and wish the injured a speedy recovery.”

Delhi, however, is skeptical of Islamabad’s statements as The Resistance Front (TRF), a shadow group of the banned Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terror outfit, has claimed responsibility for the attack.

Group claims responsibility

At least 25 tourists and a resident of the Kashmir Valley were shot dead on Tuesday at a meadow near Pahalgam in the deadliest terror attack on civilians in India since the Mumbai 26/11 attack.

Also read: Pahalgam attack: Terrorists wore body cams, wanted maximum casualities

The Mumbai massacre was also blamed on Pakistan amid Islamabad’s denials.

Islamabad's 'jugular vein'

The Pahalgam attack comes a week after Pakistan Army chief General Asim Munir claimed that Kashmir was Islamabad’s “jugular vein”.

“Our stance is absolutely clear, it was our jugular vein, it will be our jugular vein, we will not forget it. We will not leave our Kashmiri brothers in their heroic struggle,” he had said at the Overseas Pakistani Convention in Islamabad last week.

The killings in Kashmir have been widely condemned around the world including by Russia, the United States, the UK, the United Arab Emirates and Israel.

Also read: 'Go, tell Modi’: Woman gets chilling message after husband killed in Pahalgam