Indian Army reports peaceful night as Kashmir truce with Pakistan holds

The border separating longtime rivals India and Pakistan remained quiet, with the Indian army reporting a "first calm night in recent days" on Monday following an unexpected ceasefire over the weekend.

The truce, reached on Saturday, came after four consecutive days of intense hostilities involving missiles, drones, and artillery strikes that left at least 60 dead and forced thousands to flee their homes.

This outbreak marked the most severe escalation since the nations’ last direct military confrontation in 1999, raising international concerns that the situation might erupt into a full-scale war.

Initial doubts arose when both sides accused each other of violating the ceasefire just hours after its unexpected announcement by US President Donald Trump on social media.

The Indian army reported that the night passed without major disturbances in Kashmir and other regions along the international border.

According to their statement, "No untoward incidents occurred, marking the first peaceful night after a series of tense days."

This also marked the second consecutive night of calm in Poonch, a frontier town under Indian administration in the divided region of Kashmir.

Poonch had previously borne the brunt of the recent clashes, with at least 12 civilian fatalities and a mass exodus of nearly 60,000 residents seeking safety.

By Sunday, residents had begun slowly returning to Poonch, though many remained anxious about the durability of the ceasefire.

Tensions had escalated sharply before dawn on Wednesday, when India launched missile strikes targeting what it described as "terrorist camps" located in the Pakistan-controlled section of Kashmir.

These strikes came in the wake of a deadly April 22 assault on tourists in the Indian-administered region, which left 26 civilians dead.

India blamed Pakistan for supporting the attackers, a charge Islamabad denied.

Pakistan retaliated swiftly with intense shelling and claimed it had shot down five Indian fighter jets—a claim India has yet to address.

Militant activity in Kashmir has intensified since 2019, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu nationalist administration rescinded the region’s special status and brought it under direct federal control.

The Muslim-majority region of Kashmir, divided between India and Pakistan, remains a longstanding flashpoint. Both nations claim it in its entirety and have fought multiple wars over it since gaining independence from Britain in 1947.