US President Donald Trump announced on Saturday that India and Pakistan had agreed to an immediate, comprehensive ceasefire, following US mediation, bringing an end to days of escalating hostilities during which the two nuclear-armed neighbours exchanged missile attacks, drone strikes, and artillery shelling, in the worst crisis in decades.

Trump thanks India and Pakistan

"After a long night of talks brokered by the United States, I am pleased to announce that India and Pakistan have agreed to an immediate, comprehensive ceasefire," Trump said in a post on his Truth Social platform, praising the two countries for "using common sense and great intelligence."

Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar announced via Twitter on Saturday that Islamabad and New Delhi had agreed to a "ceasefire with immediate effect," following Trump's announcement.

The US announcement came after Pakistan and India exchanged strikes and attacks on each other's military installations on Saturday, prompting the United States to call on the two neighbors to begin talks and defuse the escalating conflict.