Security measures in Indian-controlled Kashmir have been increased following an attack that claimed the lives of 26 people, mostly tourists. The attack has prompted Indian forces to intensify efforts to track down those responsible for one of the deadliest incidents in the tense Himalayan area.
After the attack, many shops and businesses in Kashmir shut down in protest against the killings, responding to a call from religious and political groups in the region. Investigations into the attack have begun.
Tens of thousands of armed police and soldiers have been deployed across the region, setting up additional checkpoints. They are conducting thorough searches of vehicles and have summoned former militants for questioning at police stations in some areas.
Police called it a “terror attack” and blamed militants fighting against Indian rule. There was no immediate claim of responsibility.
Pakistan offers condolences and expresses concern
Global condemnation for Tuesday’s rare attack on the tourists came swiftly, while Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi cut short his two-day visit to Saudi Arabia and returned to New Delhi early Wednesday.
As a section of Indian media and some commentators immediately blamed Islamabad for directing such attacks, Pakistan extended condolences to the victims’ families.
“We are concerned at the loss of tourists’ lives,” Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement while wishing the injured a speedy recovery.
Officials said 24 of the people killed were Indian tourists, one was from Nepal and one was a local tourist guide. At least 17 others were injured.
Separately, soldiers killed two suspected militants in a gunfight after they tried to cross into Indian side from Pakistan-controlled Kashmir in northwestern Baramulla district along the heavily militarized Line of Control dividing the region, the Indian army said in a statement on Wednesday. There was no independent confirmation of the incident.
Kashmir has seen tourism boom despite spate of attacks
Kashmir has seen a spate of deadly attacks on Hindus, including immigrant workers from Indian states, since New Delhi ended the region’s semi-autonomy in 2019 and drastically curbed dissent, civil liberties and media freedoms.
New Delhi has vigorously pushed tourism and claimed it as a sign of normalcy returning, and the region has drawn millions of visitors who enjoy its Himalayan foothills and exquisitely decorate houseboats amid a strange peace kept by ubiquitous security checkpoints, armored vehicles and patrolling soldiers. Until Tuesday, tourists were not targeted.
Following the attack, panicked tourists started to leave Kashmir.
Monojit Debnath, a tourist from Indian city of Kolkata, said Kashmir was undoubtedly beautiful but his family did not feel secure anymore.
“We are tourists, and we should think about what safety we have here for us,” Debnath told the Press Trust of India news agency as he was leaving Srinagar, the region’s main city, with his family.
“It’s heartbreaking to see the exodus of our guests from the valley after yesterday’s tragic terror attack,” Omar Abdullah, the region’s top elected official, wrote on social media. “But at the same time we totally understand why people would want to leave.”
Powerful home minister visits
On Wednesday, India’s powerful home minister Amit Shah attended a ceremony at a police control room in Srinagar, where the slain tourists were paid floral tributes. He also met families of several victims.
Shah vowed to “come down heavily on the perpetrators with the harshest consequences.”
Later, Shah visited the site of the killing at Baisaran meadow, some 5 kilometers (3 miles) from the resort town of Pahalgam.
The meadow in Pahalgam is a popular destination, surrounded by snow-capped mountains and dotted with pine forests. It is visited by hundreds of tourists every day.
Meanwhile, security officials intensified search operations to hunt the attackers and the Indian army said in a statement that its efforts “focused on bringing the attackers to justice.”
The military used helicopters to search the mountainous, forested flanks for signs of the attackers.
Kashmir has been divided for decades
Nuclear-armed rivals India and Pakistan each administer a part of Kashmir but both claim the territory in its entirety.
Militants in the Indian-controlled portion of Kashmir have been fighting New Delhi’s rule since 1989. Many Muslim Kashmiris support the rebels’ goal of uniting the territory, either under Pakistani rule or as an independent country.
India describes militancy in Kashmir as Pakistan-backed terrorism. Pakistan denies the charge, and many Kashmiris consider it a legitimate freedom struggle. Tens of thousands of civilians, rebels and government forces have been killed in the conflict.
India has used heavy-handed tactics to maintain its control over the region that include giving the armed forces widespread powers to arrest, torture and summarily execute suspects, human rights groups say.
In March 2000, at least 35 civilians were shot and killed in a southern village in Kashmir while then-U.S. President Bill Clinton was visiting India.
In 2019, months before New Delhi revoked the region’s autonomy, a car bomb attack by militants in southern Pulwama district killed at least 40 paramilitary soldiers and wounded dozens more, bringing India and Pakistan close to war.
Violence has ebbed in recent times in the Kashmir Valley, the heart of anti-India rebellion. Fighting between government forces and rebels has largely shifted to remote areas of Jammu region, including Rajouri, Poonch and Kathua, where Indian troops have faced deadly attacks.
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Associated Press journalist Munir Ahmed, in Islamabad, contributed to this report.
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