India and Pakistan accuse each other of violating ceasefire hours after reaching deal

ISLAMABAD (AP) — India and Pakistan agreed to a ceasefire Saturday after U.S.-led talks to end the most serious military confrontation between the nuclear-armed rivals in decades but accused each other of violating the deal just hours later.

The ceasefire had been expected to bring a swift end to weeks of escalating clashes, including missile and drone strikes, triggered by the mass shooting of tourists last month that India blames on Pakistan, which denies the charge. But multiple explosions were heard in two large cities of Indian-controlled Kashmir hours after the countries agreed to the deal.

Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said late Saturday that “there had been repeated violations of the understanding arrived between the two countries” and accused Pakistan of breaching the agreement.

“We call upon Pakistan to take appropriate steps to address these violations and deal with the situation with seriousness and responsibility,” he said at a news conference in New Delhi. Misri said the Indian army was “retaliating” for what he called a “border intrusion.”

In Islamabad, Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry blamed Indian forces for initiating the ceasefire violation. The ministry said Pakistan remains committed to the agreement and its forces were handling the situation with responsibility and restraint.

“We believe that any issues in the smooth implementation of the ceasefire should be addressed through communication at appropriate levels,” the ministry said.

The first word of the truce came from U.S. President Donald Trump, who posted on his Truth Social platform that India and Pakistan had agreed to a full and immediate ceasefire: “Congratulations to both Countries on using Common Sense and Great Intelligence. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said in a speech Saturday that his country agreed to the ceasefire in the larger interest of peace in the region and hoped all the outstanding issues with India, including the long-running dispute over the Kashmir region, would be resolved through peaceful dialogue.

Misri said the head of military operations from both countries spoke Saturday afternoon and agreed “that both sides would stop all firing and military action on land, and in the air and sea.”

However, hours after the agreement, explosions heard by residents in Srinagar and Jammu in Indian-controlled Kashmir were followed by blackouts in the two cities. There were no immediate reports of casualties.

Omar Abdullah, the region’s top elected official, said in a post on social media: “What the hell just happened to the ceasefire? Explosions heard across Srinagar!!!”

Conflict between India and Pakistan is not rare, with the two countries having periodically engaged in wars, clashes and skirmishes since gaining independence from British India in 1947.

The ceasefire in the latest hostilities came after the countries fired volleys of cross-border missile strikes Saturday, when India said it targeted Pakistani air bases after Islamabad fired several high-speed missiles at military and civilian infrastructure in Punjab state. Pakistan said it responded with retaliatory strikes.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said he and Vice President JD Vance had engaged with senior officials from both countries over the past 48 hours. They included Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Sharif, India’s External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar and the Pakistani Chief of Army Staff Asim Munir.

Rubio said the two governments agreed to “start talks on a broad set of issues at a neutral site.”

Though Pakistanis had initially celebrated their army’s retaliation, they were later jubilant about the truce, saying it was a moment of national pride and relief after days of tension.

In Islamabad, Zubaida Bibi expressed her joy at the restoration of peace with India.

“War brings nothing but suffering,” she said. “We are happy that calm is returning. It feels like Eid to me. We have won.”

Tensions have soared since the attack at a popular tourist site in Indian-controlled Kashmir left 26 civilians dead, mostly Indian Hindu tourists, on April 22.

Before the ceasefire was reached, India’s military said Pakistan had targeted health facilities and schools at its three air bases in Kashmir early Saturday and India had launched missile strikes in response. They targeted Nur Khan air base in the garrison city of Rawalpindi, near the capital Islamabad, Murid air base in Chakwal city and Rafiqui air base in the Jhang district of eastern Punjab province, according to Pakistan’s military spokesman.

Pakistan's military said it launched retaliatory strikes against a Indian missile storage facility and air bases in the cities of Pathankot and Udhampur.

The Associated Press could not independently verify all the actions attributed to Pakistan or India.

After the announcement of Pakistani retaliation, residents in Indian-controlled Kashmir said they heard loud explosions at multiple places, including Srinagar, Jammu and Udhampur.

“Explosions that we are hearing today are different from the ones we heard the last two nights during drone attacks,” said Shesh Paul Vaid, the region’s former top police official and Jammu resident. “It looks like a war here.”

Residents living near Srinagar's airport, which is also an air base, said they were rattled by the explosions and booming sound of jets.

“I was already awake, but the explosions jolted my kids out of their sleep. They started crying,” said Srinagar resident Mohammed Yasin.

Omar Abdullah, Indian-controlled Kashmir’s top elected official, welcomed the ceasefire. But he said had it happened two or three days earlier "we might have avoided the bloodshed and the loss of precious lives.”

Hussain reported from Srinagar, India, and Roy reported from New Delhi. Associated Press writers Sheikh Saaliq in New Delhi, Babar Dogar in Lahore, Pakistan, Asim Tanveer in Multan, Pakistan, Munir Ahmed in Islamabad and Riaz Khan in Peshawar, Pakistan, contributed to this report.

People dance on traditional drum beat as they celebrate following India and Pakistan reaching a ceasefire deal, during a demonstration, in Hyderabad, Pakistan, Saturday, May 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Pervez Masih)

Students of an art school and their teacher carry a hand-drawn portrait of the US President Donald Trump as they celebrate the ceasefire between India and Pakistan, in Mumbai, India, Saturday, May 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Rajanish Kakade)

Kashmiri men listen to the news on the cellphone regarding ceasefire between Indian and Pakistan in Srinagar, in Indian controlled Kashmir, Saturday, May 10, 2025.(AP Photo/Mukhtar Khan)

People celebrate Pakistan and India reaching a ceasefire deal, during a demonstration in Karachi, Pakistan, Saturday, May 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan)

A Kashmiri man looks out from the window of his house during blackout after the residents of the Srinagar reported hearing explosions in Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, Saturday, May 10, 2025.(AP Photo/Dar Yasin)

Red projectiles are seen over Srinagar, in Indian controlled Kashmir, Saturday, May 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Mukhtar Khan)

People light fireworks to celebrate Pakistan and India reaching a ceasefire deal, during a demonstration in Hyderabad, Pakistan, Saturday, May 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Pervez Masih)

Red projectiles are seen on the horizon in Srinagar, in Indian controlled Kashmir, Saturday, May 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Mukhtar Khan)

A Kashmiri man watches the news on the ceasefire between India and Pakistan as he sits inside his a shikara, or traditional boat on Dal Lake in Srinagar, in Indian controlled Kashmir, Saturday, May 10, 2025.(AP Photo/Dar Yasin)

People share cake as they celebrates following India and Pakistan have reached a ceasefire deal, during a demonstration, in Hyderabad, Pakistan, Saturday, May 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Pervez Masih)

India's Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri addresses a press briefing in New Delhi, India, Saturday, May 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Karma Bhutia)

Paramilitary soldiers patrol on an inflatable boat on Dal Lake after loud explosions were heard in Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, Saturday, May 10, 2025.(AP Photo/Mukhtar Khan)

A Kashmiri villager examines damages to his house caused by overnight Indian shelling, in Shah Kot, in Neelum Vallery, a district of Pakistan's administered Kashmir, Saturday, May 10, 2025. (AP Photo/M.D. Mughal)

Supporters of a religious group 'Tahafuz-e-Namoos-e-Risalat Mahaz' take part in a rally to condemn Indian strikes in Pakistan and to show their support with Pakistan Army, in Lahore, Pakistan, Saturday, May 10, 2025. (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary)

A Kashmiri villager examines damages to his house caused by overnight Indian shelling, in Shah Kot, in Neelum Vallery, a district of Pakistan's administered Kashmir, Saturday, May 10, 2025. (AP Photo/M.D. Mughal)

Indian police personnel inspect an object suspected to be parts of a projectile intercepted by the Indian Army at Nahlan village on the outskirts of Jalandhar, India, Saturday, May 10, 2025. (AP Photo)

A residence, damaged by a Pakistan shelling, of a senior government official is seen in Rajouri, along the Line of Control, India, Saturday, May 10, 2025. (AP Photo)

Indian paramilitary soldier checks the identity card of a scooterist at a temporary check point on the road leading to the airport after loud explosions were heard in Srinagar, in Indian controlled Kashmir, Saturday, May 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Dar Yasin)

Security personnel secure the area after a Pakistan's drone attack on a residential building in Jammu, India, Saturday, May 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Channi Anand)

Indian paramilitary soldiers stand guard after loud explosions were heard in Srinagar, in Indian controlled Kashmir, Saturday, May 10, 2025.(AP Photo/Mukhtar Khan)

Rescuers and security personnel inspect a residential building damaged by a Pakistan's drone attack in Jammu, India, Saturday, May 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Channi Anand)

Police officers remove vehicles and people from the main entry of Nur Khan airbase following Indian missile strike on airbase, in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, Saturday, May 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Anjum Naveed)

Police officers remove vehicles and people from the main entry of Nur Khan airbase following Indian missile strike on airbase, in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, Saturday, May 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Anjum Naveed)

Pakistani police officers remove vehicles and people from the main entry of Nur Khan airbase following an Indian missile strike in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, Saturday, May 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Anjum Naveed)

Pakistani police officers remove vehicles and people from the main entry of Nur Khan airbase following an Indian missile strike in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, Saturday, May 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Anjum Naveed)

Pakistani police officers remove vehicles and people from the main entry of Nur Khan airbase following an Indian missile strike in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, Saturday, May 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Anjum Naveed)

Pakistani police officers remove vehicles and people from the main entry of Nur Khan airbase following an Indian missile strike in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, Saturday, May 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Anjum Naveed)

Indian National Congress workers hold Indian national flags in support of the Indian Army as they celebrate the success of 'Operation Sindoor', strike against Pakistan, in Guwahati, India, Friday, May 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Anupam Nath)

Kashmiri boys smoke during a blackout after residents reported hearing explosions and sirens in Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, Friday, May 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Mukhtar Khan)

A paramilitary soldier stand alert on a road near Karachi port following raising military tension between Pakistan and India, in Karachi, Pakistan, Friday, May 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan)

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran sent its response to the latest U.S. ceasefire proposal to end the Iran war via Pakistani mediators on Sunday, but U.S. President Donald Trump quickly rejected it in a social media post as “TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE!” — the latest setback to efforts to resolve the standoff in the Persian Gulf that has throttled shipping and sent energy prices soaring.

Iranian state media reported that Tehran rejected the U.S. proposal as amounting to surrender, insisting instead on “war reparations by the U.S., full Iranian sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz, an end to sanctions, and the release of seized Iranian assets.”

Washington’s latest proposal addressed a deal to end the war, reopen the strait and roll back Iran’s nuclear program.

Trump's rejection of the Iranian response included no details. In an earlier post, he accused Tehran of “playing games” with the United States for nearly 50 years, adding: "They will be laughing no longer!"

Trump is giving diplomacy “every chance we possibly can before going back to hostilities,” the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Mike Waltz, told ABC earlier.

Iran's new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, who has not been seen or heard publicly since the war began, “issued new and decisive directives for the continuation of operations and the powerful confrontation with the enemies” while meeting with the head of the joint military command, the state broadcaster reported, with no details.

The fragile ceasefire was tested when a drone ignited a small fire on a ship off Qatar and the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait reported drones entering their airspace. The UAE said it shot down two drones and blamed Iran. No casualties were reported, and no one immediately claimed responsibility.

Qatar's Foreign Ministry called the ship attack a “dangerous and unacceptable escalation that threatens the security and safety of maritime trade routes and vital supplies in the region." The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations Center gave no details about the ship's owner or origin.

Kuwait Defense Ministry spokesperson Brig. Gen. Saud Abdulaziz Al Otaibi said forces responded to drones but did not say where they came from.

Iran and armed allied groups such as the Lebanese militant Hezbollah group have used drones to carry out hundreds of strikes since the war began with U.S. and Israeli attacks on Feb. 28.

Trump has reiterated threats to resume full-scale bombing if Iran does not accept an agreement to reopen the strait and roll back its nuclear program. Iran has largely blocked the strategic waterway that's key to the global flow of oil, natural gas and fertilizer since the war began, rattling world markets.

The U.S. military in turn has blockaded Iranian ports since April 13, saying it has turned back 61 commercial vessels and disabled four. On Friday, it struck two Iranian oil tankers it said were trying to breach the blockade. Iran’s Revolutionary Guard navy says any attack on Iranian oil tankers or commercial vessels would be met with a “heavy assault” on U.S. bases in the region and enemy ships.

Another sticking point in negotiations is Iran’s highly enriched uranium. The U.N. nuclear agency says Iran has more than 440 kilograms (970 pounds) enriched up to 60% purity, a short, technical step from weapons grade.

In an interview posted late Saturday, an Iranian military spokesperson said forces were on “full readiness” to protect sites where uranium is stored.

“We considered it possible that they might intend to steal it through infiltration operations or heli-borne operations,” Brig. Gen. Akrami Nia told the IRNA news agency.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in an excerpt of an interview with CBS airing Sunday said the war isn't over because the enriched uranium needs to be taken out of Iran. “Trump has said to me, ‘I want to go in there,’ and I think it can be done physically,” he said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Saturday that Moscow’s proposal to take enriched uranium from Iran to help negotiate a settlement remains on the table.

The majority of Iran’s highly enriched uranium is likely at its Isfahan nuclear complex, the International Atomic Energy Agency director-general told The Associated Press last month. The facility was hit by U.S.-Israeli airstrikes in the 12-day war last year and faced less intense attacks this year.

Iran's deputy foreign minister warned against a planned French-British effort that aims to support maritime security in the Strait of Hormuz after hostilities are over.

“The presence of French and British vessels, or those of any other country, for any possible cooperation with illegal U.S. actions in the Strait of Hormuz that violate international law will be met with a decisive and immediate response from the armed forces,” Kazem Gharibabadi said on social media.

French President Emmanuel Macron responded by saying it won't be a military deployment but an international mission to secure shipping once conditions allow.

Several attacks against ships in the Persian Gulf have occurred over the past week, and a U.S. effort to “guide” ships through the strait was quickly paused.

South Korea announced initial findings from an investigation that said two unidentified objects struck the South Korean-operated vessel HMM NAMU about one minute apart while it was anchored in the strait last week, causing an explosion and fire. Officials have yet to determine who was responsible.

Magdy reported from Cairo. Associated Press writers Munir Ahmed in Islamabad; Melanie Lidman in Tel Aviv, Israel; Tong-hyung Kim in Seoul, South Korea; Julia Frankel in Jerusalem and Josh Boak in Washington contributed to this report.

Women walk in northern Tehran, Iran, Sunday, May 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

A Revolutionary Guard soldier stands at the counter of a fast food restaurant in northern Tehran, Iran, Sunday, May 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

The front page of the Sunday May 10, 2026, edition of Iranian newspaper, Jamejam, is seen with a cartoon satirizing the U.S. President Donald Trump that asks: "Open the the Strait of Hormuz" on a news stand in northern Tehran, Iran, Sunday, May 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

Vehicles drive past banners showing portraits of the school children who were killed during a strike on a school in southern town of Minab on Feb. 28, at Tajrish square in northern Tehran, Iran, Sunday, May 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

The South Korean-operated vessel HMM NAMU is docked after being damaged from a fire following an explosion in the Strait of Hormuz, at a port in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Friday, May 8, 2026. (Kim Sang-hun/Yonhap via AP)

Container ships sit at anchor in the Strait of Hormuz off Bandar Abbas, Iran, Saturday, May 2, 2026.(Amirhosein Khorgooi/ISNA via AP)