Newspapers in India and Pakistan have hailed the first bus service across divided Kashmir in 60 years, but issued caution on prospects of a wider peace.
Some praised the 49 passengers on Thursday's journeys for their courage in the face of threats from militants.
Others said that the service was a gesture that could not replace a lasting solution for the region.
Newspapers also condemned militants opposed to Indian rule who have vowed to continue attacks to disrupt the bus.
The two buses between Muzaffarabad in Pakistani-administered Kashmir and Srinagar in the Indian sector successfully completed their journeys on Thursday evening.
One of the buses survived a grenade attack along the route that injured four bystanders, including a policeman.
There were scenes of joy, particularly at the Line of Control that divides the region, where the passengers crossed the Peace Bridge to be met by enthusiastic crowds, officials and relatives on the other side.
"The spin-off for peace, politics and India's long-term strategy in the region could be immense"
What does future hold?
Pakistan's The News said: "While the event may not have been a re-run of the Berlin Wall, the catharsis was enormous."
It said the unexpected appearance of Mehbooba Mufti, head of Jammu and Kashmir's ruling People's Democratic Party, on the Peace Bridge was "a loud message to the 'hardliners' that the peace process cannot be scuttled now".
The headline in the Indian Express read: "2 buses. 49 passengers. History".
It was echoed in the Asian Age's, which read: "Peace bus makes history". It added: "On Thursday afternoon Jammu and Kashmir, a land of awesome grandeur whose division 58 years ago brought misery to its people, was on the threshold of a new era."
'Cordons of isolation'
Lengthy coverage was given to the human element of the high-profile political event, with details of the reunions between Kashmiris after decades of separation.
"Such gestures cannot be a substitute for a determined political effort to tackle the Kashmir problem"
But the newspapers also tried to digest whether the event would spur further steps to a wider peace in the region.
Saeed Naqvi, writing in the Indian Express, said: "If the atmosphere of peace and harmony in the subcontinent is to be made permanent, Manmohan Singh and Pervez Musharraf must now work towards real celebrations in Kashmir, way beyond the bus journey, step by measured step... preparing public opinion in India, Pakistan and Kashmir for adjustments, placing the residual militants into ever narrowing cordons of isolation."
An editorial in Pakistan's Dawn said it was important both sides should "persist with and expand travel links between the two parts of Kashmir".
But it added: "At the same time, such gestures cannot be a substitute for a determined political effort to tackle the Kashmir problem and other knotty issues that divide Pakistan and India."
The bus service will now continue on a fortnightly basis.
However, the spectre of violence is still casting a shadow over it.
On Thursday, four militant groups vowed to continue attacks such as the raid on Wednesday on a compound holding passengers in Srinagar in which two militants were shot dead.
Violence in the region continued on Friday, when troops in Indian-controlled Kashmir killed two suspected militants of the Jaish-e-Mohammad group in a clash in the southern district of Pulwama.
^ Back to top | BBC Sport Home | BBC Homepage | Contact us | Help | ©