Why Trump govt slammed New York Times for Pahalgam terrorist attack coverage

The United States government recently took strong exception to The New York Times’ coverage of the recent terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam, which left 26 people dead.

The US House Foreign Affairs Committee criticised the newspaper’s language, accusing it of playing down the severity of the attack by referring to the assailants as “militants” and “gunmen” rather than “terrorists”.

In a pointed X post, the committee shared a screengrab of the report’s original headline with the word militants crossed out and replaced with the term ‘terrorists’ in bold and red colour.

The original The New York Times headline read, “At Least 24 Tourists Gunned Down by Militants in Kashmir.

“Hey, @nytimes we fixed it for you. This was a TERRORIST ATTACK, plain and simple. Whether it’s India or Israel, when it comes to TERRORISM the NYT is removed from reality,” the post read.

The New York Times, in its initial report, described the perpetrators as “militants” rather than terrorists and the incident as a “shooting,” attributing the label of “terror attack” to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The comments by the committee come as the US administration under President Donald Trump continues to support India after the Pahalgam incident in Jammu and Kashmir on Tuesday that claimed 26 lives.

PM Modi on Pahalgam terror attack

Narendra Modi on Thursday issued a stern warning to the perpetrators of the Pahalgam terror attack, declaring that India will relentlessly pursue every terrorist and their backers.

Speaking from Bihar, the Prime Minister said the nation stands united in its resolve to ensure justice is delivered.

“Today, on the soil of Bihar, I say to the whole world — India will identify, trace, and punish every terrorist and their backers. We will pursue them to the ends of the Earth,” PM Narendra Modi said.

Trump dials PM Modi

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday held a telephonic conversation with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and offered his condolences at the loss of lives in a terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir.

Trump condemned the terror attack in Pahalgam and expressed full support to India to bring to justice the perpetrators of this “heinous attack.”

US Vice President JD Vance also called Prime Minister Narendra Modi and strongly condemned the dastardly terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir. He conveyed his deepest condolences on the loss of lives and reiterated that the United States stands with the people of India in this difficult hour.

India acts against terrorism

Following the attack, India has taken strong countermeasures against Pakistan for its support of cross-border terrorism.

In the CCS meeting, chaired by PM Modi, in the presence of Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday, India decided to hold the Indus Waters Treaty of 1960 in abeyance until Pakistan credibly and irrevocably abjures its support for cross-border terrorism and has closed the integrated Attari Check Post.

India has also declared the officials of the Pakistani High Commission as Persona Non-Grata and ordered them to leave India within a week. India has also decided to cancel any visas provided under the SAARC Visa Exemption Scheme (SVES) and ordered Pakistan to leave the country within 48 hours.