Pakistan Dismisses Indian Terror Dossier Handed Over After Kashmir Attack

Islamabad has dismissed a dossier handed over by New Delhi in the wake of a deadly attack in Indian-administered Kashmir last month that brought the neighbors to the brink of war, saying that the allegation Pakistan-based militants were involved was unsubstantiated.

India alleges that Islamabad had a hand in the February suicide bombing in which 40 paramilitary personnel were killed. Pakistan, long accused by India of using militant proxies in disputed Kashmir, denies playing any role.

The Pakistani Foreign Ministry said on March 28 that India had provided Islamabad with a list of 90 individuals suspected of belonging to banned organizations with militant links and 22 locations of alleged militant training camps.

The ministry said that 54 individuals detained during an apparent crackdown against militant groups based on its soil were being investigated and that "no details linking them to [the attack] have been found so far."

"Similarly, the 22 pin locations shared by India have been examined. No such camps exist," it added.

Tensions between two nuclear-armed neighbors soared after the February 14 suicide bombing, which was claimed by the Pakistan-based militant group Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM).

Both countries carried out aerial bombing missions on each other's soil and their warplanes also fought a brief dogfight over Kashmir's skies.

Tensions later cooled and Pakistan handed back a captured Indian pilot.

The two neighbors have a history of bitter relations since gaining independence from Britain in 1947.

The rivals have fought three wars, two of them over the Himalayan region of Kashmir, where the two sides still regularly exchange fire.

Based on reporting by Reuters and AFP