Pakistan test fires ballistic missile as tensions with India spike after Kashmir gun massacre

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistan test-fired Saturday a ballistic missile as tensions with India spiked over last week’s deadly attack on tourists in the disputed Kashmir region.

The surface-to-surface missile has a range of 450 kilometres (about 280 miles), the Pakistani military said.

The launch of the Abdali Weapon System was aimed at ensuring the “operational readiness of troops and validating key technical parameters,” including the missile’s advanced navigation system and enhanced manoeuvrability features, according to a statement from the military.

Pakistan’s President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif congratulated the scientists, engineers and those behind the successful missile test.