PAKISTAN'S Defence Minister has threatened to "destroy" India – after India said on Thursday it had carried out "surgical strikes" on suspected militants preparing to infiltrate from Pakistan-ruled Kashmir.

The strikes, which were a response to shots fired across the de facto border through the disputed Himalayan territory, could lead to a military escalation between the two nuclear-armed neighbours – risking a ceasefire agreed in 2003.

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Both Pakistan and India claim Kashmir in full, but rule separate parts