Fears of an all-out war between two nuclear powers are growing following India’s missile attack into Pakistani-controlled territory on Wednesday, killing at least 26 civilians. Pakistan has declared the strikes to be an “act of war” and said it shot down several Indian fighter jets in retaliation. Its Prime Minister, Shehbaz Sharif, condemned the airstrikes and said the “deceitful enemy has carried out cowardly attacks” and that his country would retaliate. The Indian Ministry of Defence confirmed it struck nine locations in Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir, while retaliatory artillery fire was also reported. India added that it struck “terrorist infrastructure” used by militants linked to last month’s massacre of tourists in India-controlled Kashmir. Tensions have soared between the nuclear-armed neighbours since the attack, which India has blamed Pakistan for backing. Islamabad has denied the accusation. Britons have been warned not to travel to parts of India and Pakistan following the escalation in conflict between the two nations, with the UK Foreign Office issuing travel warnings. But why have things suddenly kicked off? And what is the history between the two countries? Here is everything we know. India attacked Pakistan in the early hours of Wednesday morning (May 7), hitting nine different locations in both Pakistan-administered Kashmir and Pakistan. It said it had hit these sites believing they were places where terror attacks were “planned and directed”, labelling them "terrorist infrastructure” but stressing that it had not hit any Pakistani military facilities. A spokesman said its "actions have been focused, measured and non-escalatory in nature". According to Pakistan, three different areas were hit: Muzaffarabad and Kotli in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, and Bahawalpur in the Pakistani province of Punjab. The strikes come weeks after rising tensions between the nuclear-armed neighbours over the shootings in the Indian resort town of Pahalgam. The attack, which took place on April 22, saw 26 people killed and was labelled the worst attack on civilians in the region in 20 years. Prime Minister Narendra Modi condemned the attack and vowed that his country would hunt the suspects "till the ends of the Earth" to make sure they "will be punished beyond their imagination". But India has remained quiet over the incident and has not publicly named any group it believes responsible. However, Indian police have alleged two of the attackers were Pakistani nationals, with Delhi accusing Pakistan of supporting militants - a charge Islamabad strenuously denies. Kashmir is claimed in full by India and Pakistan, but administered only in part by each since they were partitioned following independence from Britain in 1947. The countries have fought two wars over the area historically as both deem it important to their success as nations. For India, full control of the area of Kashmir would guarantee it a direct route into central Asia as well as a border with Afghanistan. Control would also deny Pakistan a border with China and in turn limit Beijing’s ability to help Islamabad. The two have grown increasingly close in both issues of military and trading. Pakistan in turns deems the area important as it needs to maintain its land route to China. Full control of the region would also ensure Pakistan’s water supply, the bulk of which comes from rivers that pass through the parts of Kashmir controlled by India. The country’s main industry is agriculture, and Pakistan is said to be “extremely high-stressed” in water security. When Britain granted India independence, the country was split in two intendent states, India and Pakistan, predominantly along Hindu and Muslim lines. This came two years after World War II and the partitioning of the former British colony resulted in mass movement and deaths as people tried to move to the area they wanted to be a part of. Estimations claim the split led to the displacement of up to 15 million people, with the death toll estimated to have reached between several hundred thousand and one million people as Hindus and Muslims migrated in opposite directions to reach India and Pakistan, respectively. The bad blood between the nations has rumbled since then, and never really improved. Since 1947, India and Pakistan have fought three major wars and one undeclared war over their borders. Relations between the countries have remained fraught as a result of repeated attacks of cross-border terrorism and issues between the nations. Many world leaders have called for restraint as tensions continue to escalate in recent days. The UK has said it is ready to "support" India and Pakistan to de-escalate bad blood. Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said that Cabinet colleague David Lammy has "reached out" to both nations, as has American and European counterparts, labelling the current situation "hugely worrying". He said: "Our message would be that we are a friend, a partner to both countries. We stand ready to support both countries. "Both have a huge interest in regional stability, in dialogue, in de-escalation and anything we can do to support that, we are here and willing to do." US President Donald Trump has also voiced concerns over the issues escalating, saying: “I guess people knew something was going to happen based on a little bit of the past. They’ve been fighting for a long time. They’ve been fighting for many, many decades. I hope it ends very quickly.” A spokesperson for United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also waded in saying in a statement: “The Secretary-General is very concerned about the Indian military operations across the Line of Control and international border. He calls for maximum military restraint from both countries. “The world cannot afford a military confrontation between India and Pakistan.” French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot added: “We understand India’s desire to protect itself against the scourge of terrorism, but we obviously call on both India and Pakistan to exercise restraint to avoid escalation and, of course, to protect civilians.” Israel’s ambassador to India, Reuven Azar, said in a statement that Israel supports India’s right to self-defence. Posting on X, Azar said, “Israel supports India’s right for self defense. Terrorists should know there’s no place to hide from their heinous crimes against the innocent. #OperationSindoor.”