India and Pakistan exchanged an escalating series of tit-for-tat diplomatic measures on Thursday after New Delhi blamed its arch-rival for backing a deadly shooting attack in contested Kashmir.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi vowed to pursue and punish the gunmen responsible for killing 26 civilians in the tourist hotspot of Pahalgam on Tuesday, accusing Pakistan of supporting "cross-border terrorism".

"I say to the whole world: India will identify, track and punish every terrorist and their backer," Modi said in his first speech since the attack in the Himalayan region. "We will pursue them to the ends of the Earth".

Indian police in the region have identified two of the three fugitive gunmen as Pakistani.

The attack at Pahalgam in contested Muslim-majority Kashmir was the deadliest for a quarter of a century and marked a dramatic shift with the targeting of civilians, rather than Indian security forces.

New Delhi suspended a water-sharing treaty, announced the closure of the main land border crossing with Pakistan, downgraded diplomatic ties and withdrew visas for Pakistanis on Wednesday night.

On Thursday, Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif convened a rare meeting of the National Security Committee (NSC) with top military officials, including powerful Chief of........

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