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.

The nuclear-armed rivals, which both claim Kashmir and administer separate parts of it, are at a dangerous crossroad after Tuesday’s militant attack, analysts said.

Tuesday's attack is seen as a setback to what Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party have projected as a major achievement in revoking the special status Jammu and Kashmir enjoyed and bringing peace and development to the long-troubled Muslim-majority region.