Bilawal switches tone, talks of walking ‘the path of peace’ after ‘blood will flow’ remark

After raising the hackles across the border with his “blood will flow in the river” remark while addressing his constituency, Pakistan People's Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari on Tuesday switched his tone and talked of walking the path of peace amid growing tensions with India in the wake of the Pahalgam attack in Kashmir.

Speaking in the National Assembly during the session on Tuesday, Bilawal said, “If India wishes to walk the path of peace, let them come with open hands and not clenched fists. Let them come with facts and not fabrication. Let us sit as neighbours and speak the truth.
He said, “Let India decide. Will it be dialogue or destruction? Cooperation or confrontation?”

“If they do not … then let them remember that the people of Pakistan are not made to kneel. The people of Pakistan have a resolve to fight, not because we love conflict, but because we love freedom.”

In the April 22 attack in Pahalgam, terrorists killed 26 people, mostly tourists, in one of the deadliest assaults in Jammu and Kashmir since 2000. 

Bilawal said, “Pakistan had no hand in that crime. We do not export terror, we are the victims of terrorism.”
Tensions have spiked and Pakistan is expecting an incursion from India. 

Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Asif warned on Monday (May 5, 2025) that India could carry out a military strike at any moment along the Line of Control in Kashmir.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif and the services chiefs visited the headquarters of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) on Tuesday and received a detailed briefing on the prevailing security environment, with a particular focus on preparedness for conventional threats in light of India’s increasingly aggressive and provocative posture along the eastern border.

A statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office said that the top civil and military leadership was apprised of security developments, threat matrix, conventional military options, and hybrid warfare tactics.

“The entire nation is behind our brave armed forces. The Pakistan Army is one of the most professional and disciplined forces in the world,” said PM Shehbaz Sharif.