Pakistan closes air space for Indian airlines

Pakistan closed its airspace for Indian airlines and rejected New Delhi’s suspension of a water sharing treaty on April 24 in retaliation for neighbouring India’s response to a deadly militant attack in the Indian-ruled part of Kashmir.

The tit-for-tat announcements took relations between the nuclear-armed neighbours, who have fought three wars, to the lowest level in years.

The latest diplomatic crisis was triggered by the killing of 26 men at a popular tourist destination in Indian Kashmir on April 22, in the worst attack on civilians in India since the 2008 Mumbai shootings.

New Delhi said there were cross-border elements to the attack and downgraded ties with Pakistan on April 23, suspending a 1960 treaty on sharing waters of the Indus River and closing the only land crossing between the neighbours.

Indian police published notices naming three militant suspects and saying two were Pakistanis, but New Delhi has not offered any proof of the linkages or shared any more details.

On April 24, Pakistan said it was closing its air space to Indian-owned or operated airlines, suspending all trade including through third countries and halting special South Asian visas issued to Indian nationals.