India and Pakistan are on the brink of war.

A terrorist attack killed 26 in the beautiful hill station of Pahalgam, Kashmir, on April 22. India blamed Pakistani-trained militants. Early on the morning of May 7, India launched missile attacks on nine sites in Pakistan, calling the strikes “measured, responsible and designed to be non-escalatory in nature,” which Pakistan called a “blatant act of war.”

These attacks tear at the intertwined cultural fabric of India and Pakistan and recall their partition in 1947, after the end of British colonial rule.

The personal and the political flow together here. Aarti Menon’s father was killed in the April 22 attack and she noted that the terrorists spared her life as she clung to her six-year-old twin sons. Two Muslims named Musafir and Sameer helped her get away. Later, she recalled, “I have two brothers in Kashmir now. May Allah protect you both.”

The U.S. is trying to reduce tensions. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has spoken to senior officials on both sides, and President Trump and House Speaker Mike Johnson affirmed American support for India against terrorism. Later, Trump echoed Western sentiment saying the U.S. is close to India and Pakistan. With typical exaggeration, he also noted India and Pakistan have fought for a thousand........

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