Relations between India and Pakistan are deteriorating rapidly following a massacre of tourists in Kashmir. The murders and subsequent diplomatic responses, including the suspension of key treaties, are fueling tensions across the region.
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00:00From burning Pakistani flags in India,
00:08to calls for peace in Kashmir,
00:17and demands for water access in Pakistan.
00:20Protests are erupting across South Asia, as the already fraught India-Pakistan relationship
00:30takes a sharp decline. On April 22nd, 26 tourists were killed in Kashmir,
00:36a disputed region administered by India. Those who escaped with their lives tell of targeted attacks.
00:42We have finally breathed a sigh of relief now that we have reached the airport.
00:47The militants were marking out Hindus and killing them there.
00:50New Delhi says they've already identified several of the gunmen involved,
00:55and that a Pakistani rebel group was behind the massacre.
00:58We will pursue them to the ends of the earth.
01:04Pakistan denies playing any role in the attack. The murders have sparked a rapid tit-for-tat escalation
01:11in diplomatic responses, with India closing borders and cancelling visas,
01:16and suspending a decades-old water-sharing agreement between the two countries.
01:21India says it's prepared to go further.
01:24This is just the first step. These are the non-kinetic first steps that the government
01:28has taken to change the rules of engagement with Pakistan that is no longer business as usual.
01:33Pakistan has warned any attempts to restrict access to water would amount to an act of war.
01:39India is fighting a low-intensity war against us, and if they want to scale up the tensions,
01:44we will be ready. No one should have any doubts.
01:47In response, Pakistan is closing airspace to Indian airliners and has suspended the peace agreement
01:53that effectively set its de facto borders with India. Both countries claim much of Kashmir,
01:59and disagreements over who should control the region date back almost a century. The most recent
02:05escalation has the UN calling for calm. We very much appeal to both the governments of Pakistan
02:12and the government of India to exercise maximum restraint and to ensure that the situation and
02:18the developments we've seen do not deteriorate any further. Conflicts in the area have a history of
02:25getting violent, and analysts and diplomats are warning if things continue to deteriorate,
02:30the entire region could again be plunged into crisis. Kama Xu, Adil Bra and Rhys Ayres for Taiwan Plus.