Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi vowed on Thursday to pursue, track and punish terrorists and their backers in a strong reaction to a deadly militant attack on tourists in Kashmir, where police have identified two of the gunmen as Pakistani.

Tensions between arch rivals India and Pakistan were high on Thursday as New Delhi mounted a diplomatic offensive against Islamabad, blaming it for a deadly attack that killed 26 people, mostly tourists,

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.