Families are reinforcing their bunkers and confirming evacuation plans. Hospitals have stocked up on essential medicines. Schoolchildren are being trained on the essentials of first aid.

All across the Pakistani-held section of Kashmir, there is an air of emergency, a persistent trepidation as the threat of military confrontation looms.

“God willing, nothing will happen,” said Azeem Gilani, a baker in Muzaffarabad, the capital of Pakistani-administered Kashmir. “We have seen this before. But if, God forbid, the situation worsens, Kashmiris on both sides will suffer.”

Since a terrorist attack two weeks ago on the Indian-administered side of Kashmir left 26 innocent people dead, Kashmiris have tried to prepare for what seems like an inevitable military escalation between India and Pakistan. Both countries claim Kashmir in its entirety, but each controls only a section. The beautiful Himalayan territory has been the main flashpoint of conflict between the archrival nations for almost 80 years.