Pakistan’s Military Is Using War Fever to Boost Its Power
The Pakistani military establishment has been facing heavy criticism since it ousted Imran Khan and clamped down on political dissent. The country’s generals have now exploited the stand-off with India over Kashmir to boost their flagging popularity.
A man carries a portrait of Pakistani Army Chief General Syed Asim Munir, during a rally to express solidarity with Pakistan’s armed forces in Islamabad on May 14, 2025. (Aamir Qureshi / AFP via Getty Images)
Two weeks ago, Pakistan and India were on the brink of all-out war. On May 7, India’s far-right Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government launched air strikes across the Line of Control (LoC), targeting sites in Pakistan-administered Kashmir and as far inland as Bahawalpur, Punjab.
Branded “Operation Sindoor,” these strikes were, according to the Indian government, a response to the killing of Indian tourists by militants in Pahalgam, in Indian-administered Kashmir. India blamed Pakistan for the attack, despite offering no evidence to back up its accusations and refusing calls for an independent investigation. The Indian strikes killed dozens, including at least one child.
Pakistan retaliated, and in the days that followed, both nuclear powers exchanged fire across the LoC and deployed drones into each other’s airspace. Scores of civilians were killed on both sides — the overwhelming majority of them in Kashmir. Then, on May 10, Donald Trump brokered a cease-fire, which, despite initial charges of violations by both India and Pakistan, has since held.
This article is for subscribers only. Please login or subscribe to access our full archives and beautiful print and digital magazine starting at just $3 a month.