Pakistan and India confirm ceasefire has been reached after both countries had exchanged missile attacks<\/p>\n
The US president, <\/strong>Donald Trump<\/strong>, on Saturday announced a ceasefire agreement<\/strong> between India and Pakistan after deadly attacks between the nuclear-armed rivals.<\/p>\n Within hours, violations were reported from the main cities of Indian Kashmir, the territory that had borne the brunt of four days of fighting.<\/strong> Blasts were heard in Srinagar and Jammu and projectiles and flashes were seen in the night sky over Jammu, similar to the events of the previous evening, according to authorities, residents and Reuters witnesses.<\/p>\n Military spokespeople in both countries<\/strong> did not immediately respond to requests for comment.<\/p>\n The earlier ceasefire announcement, confirmed by both countries, came after India and Pakistan fired volleys of missiles across their borders on Saturday<\/strong> as they escalated their worst fighting in nearly three decades.<\/p>\n The US <\/strong>secretary of <\/strong>state, <\/strong>Marco Rubio<\/strong>, said the agreement <\/strong>came after extensive negotiations<\/strong> by him and the US vice-president, JD Vance, with the Indian and Pakistani prime ministers, Narendra Modi and Shehbaz Sharif, and other top officials. Both sides had earlier said they would be willing to de-escalate the conflict if the other side was willing to do the same.<\/p>\n Rubio, posting on X, said both sides would now start talks<\/strong> on a broad set of issues at a neutral site. Pakistan\u2019s foreign minister, Ishaq Dar, told broadcaster Geo news on Saturday that three dozen countries were involved in the diplomacy that secured the \u201cfull fledged\u201d ceasefire.<\/p>\n Earlier on Saturday, Pakistan military officials told state-run media <\/strong>it had launched a retaliatory operation,<\/strong> targeting several bases including a missile storage site in northern India. Officials said the attack was called Operation Bunyan Ul Marsoos, an Arabic phrase meaning \u201cwall of lead\u201d.<\/p>\n Pakistan\u2019s offensive came shortly after it said India had fired missiles from fighter jets at three air<\/strong>bases earlier on Saturday, <\/strong>including one close to the capital, Islamabad. Pakistan said its air defences had intercepted most of them.<\/p>\n Among the targets was <\/strong>Nur Khan air base<\/strong> in <\/strong>Rawalpindi<\/strong>, where the Pakistani military has its headquarters,<\/strong> which is around 6 miles (10km) from Islamabad. The strikes caused panic in the densely populated area, with loud explosions sending people running into the streets. In the aftermath of the strikes, Pakistan shut down its air<\/strong>space.<\/strong><\/p>\n India\u2019s attempted strikes on Rawalpindi and other key military bases \u2013 and the launch of Pakistan\u2019s counterattack on Saturday \u2013 marked the steepest escalation in their confrontation yet<\/a>, bringing the two countries the closest they have been to war in decades.<\/strong><\/p>\n Locked in a longstanding dispute over Kashmir<\/a>, the two countries have engaged in daily clashes since Wednesday, when India launched strikes inside Pakistan on what it called militant bases.<\/p>\n At least 48 people have been killed since Wednesday<\/strong>, according to casualty estimates on both sides of the border that have not been independently verified.<\/p>\n The dramatic flare-up was sparked by a deadly attack on Hindu tourists<\/a><\/strong> in Indian-administered Kashmir last month, when 26 civilians were killed. India has accused Pakistan of supporting militants behind the attack.<\/p>\n