Relations between India and Pakistan are cratering following a deadly attack in the disputed Himalayan region of Jammu and Kashmir that left more than two dozen tourists dead, raising fears of military escalation between the nuclear-armed rivals.

The nuclear-armed rivals, which both claim Kashmir and administer separate parts of it, are at a dangerous crossroad after Tuesday’s militant attack, analysts said.

Activists from India's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) burn an effigy during a protest following a suspected militant attack near south Kashmir's scenic Pahalgam, in Srinagar,. REUTERS/Stringer (Reuters) - Twenty-six people were killed and 17 were injured when suspected militants opened fire at tourists in India's Jammu and Kashmir territory on Tuesday,