Pakistan, April 30 -- Pakistan's Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar said on Tuesday Islamabad would not be the first to strike India despite heightened tensions following a deadly attack in Indian-administered Kashmir, though it would respond forcefully to any escalatory move by its eastern neighbor.

India has blamed Pakistan for the April 22 assault in the Pahalgam area of the disputed Himalayan region that left 26 tourists dead, an allegation Islamabad has categorically rejected.

In the aftermath, New Delhi suspended the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) and expelled Pakistani diplomats. The latter move was reciprocated by the administration in Islamabad, though it also called for a "neutral" international investigation into the Pahalgam inciden...