A background of Kashmir conflict

Pakistan and India have been exchanging fire across the Line of Control (LoC), days after the Pahalgam attack, in which 26 civilians were killed in Indian-controlled Kashmir on April 22.

The Indian government on Wednesday confirmed carrying out air strikes on nine identified "terrorist-training camps" located in the Pakistan-controlled Kashmir. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi monitored the air strikes.

The Pahalgam attack was described as the worst attack on tourists in the Indian-controlled Kashmir in past several decades. The incident led to escalating tensions between the two South Asian nations.

At the heart of their longstanding animosity lies the status of the picturesque valley of Kashmir, a flashpoint of two wars and a spate of armed conflicts between India and Pakistan over more than 75 years. Currently, both countries control parts of Kashmir.

India and Pakistan have inherited the Kashmir issue from their shared colonial history of centuries. When the South Asian subcontinent gained its independence after World War II, the British colonialists left behind them a divided region, the root cause of turmoil and violence. 

In 1947, the two countries fought their first war, which ended with a UN-mediated ceasefire. In July 1972, Pakistan and India signed the Simla Agreement, which established the LoC and outlined a commitment to resolve disputes through peaceful means. The agreement has since formed the bedrock of India-Pakistan relations. 

In recent years, the situation in the Kashmir region has generally eased, but conflicts between the two sides have occurred from time to time, with each accusing the other of violating the ceasefire agreement.

During decades of sanguinary conflicts and territorial disputes, life of people in Kashmir has been a disaster. On Wednesday, the Pakistan army said that at least eight civilians, including a child, were killed, 35 others injured and two missing after India fired missiles at multiple locations in the Pakistan-controlled Kashmir.

(With input from Xinhua)