NYT refuses to call Pahalgam attackers 'terrorists'; government schools newspaper
What's the story
The US government has pulled up The New York Times over its coverage of the recent terrorist attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, which killed 26 people.
The US House Foreign Affairs Committee slammed the paper for trying to soften the blow of the attack by referring to the terrorists involved as "militants" and "gunmen" but not "terrorists."
Social media response
Committee's X post highlights NYT's language issue
In a scathing X post, the US House Foreign Affairs Committee posted a screenshot of the original headline of the NYT, crossing out the word "militants" and replacing it with "terrorists" in bold red letters.
"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," it wrote on X.
Twitter Post
Check out the post here
Hey, @nytimes we fixed it for you. This was a TERRORIST ATTACK plain and simple.
— House Foreign Affairs Committee Majority (@HouseForeignGOP) April 23, 2025
Whether it’s India or Israel, when it comes to TERRORISM the NYT is removed from reality. pic.twitter.com/7PefEKMtdq
Reporting
Al Jazeera has also refused to call attackers terrorists
To be sure, The Resistance Front, an offshoot of the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba, has already claimed responsibility for the attack.
Reporting on the attack, the NYT referred to it as a "militant" attack. The newspaper's introduction also stated that it was Prime Minister Narendra Modi who had termed the shooting a "terror attack."
Apart from the NYT, Al Jazeera has also refused to call the attackers terrorists in its reports.
Pakistan
India takes strong countermeasures against Pakistan
In the aftermath of the Pahalgam attack, India has launched an aggressive counter-offensive against Pakistan for its suspected backing of cross-border terrorism.
In a high-level meeting chaired by PM Modi, it was decided to suspend the Indus Waters Treaty of 1960 till Pakistan credibly and irrevocably abjures its support for cross-border terrorism.
Pakistani officials have also been declared Persona Non-Grata, and asked to leave within a week.