Welsh-Kashmiri MS condemns attack on tourists in Indian-controlled Kashmir

Welsh-Kashmiri MS Altaf Hussain has condemned a violent terror attack in Indian-controlled Kashmir which targeted dozens of tourists.

At least 26 people were killed and 17 others wounded when gunmen opened fire on a group of civilians in Indian-controlled Kashmir on Tuesday (April 22).

It was the worst assault in years targeting tourists in the restive region, which is claimed by both India and Pakistan.

India describes militancy in Kashmir as Pakistan-backed terrorism.

Pakistan denies the allegation, and many Kashmiris consider the militants to be part of a home-grown freedom struggle.

‘Tragedy’

Welsh-Kashmiri Member of the Senedd, Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Equalities & Social Justice, Dr Altaf Hussain, described the events as a “tragedy”.

In a statement, he said: “I’m appalled at the unbearable loss of life in Pahalgam through terrorism, which has no place at all in modern-day nor just societies. People here feel numb, shouldering sadness after a terrible tragedy; which we must now face as a unified human race, where we must begin by disregarding divisions by background – Muslim, Christian, Hindu, Jewish, Sikh, Buddhist, any kind whatsoever.

“Kashmiri people have experienced such suffering, existing as a region self-aware of its own deep history. Now, the best possible message must be calmness whilst we express grief processing this tragedy.

“We mourn today though hope truly that justice can be brought not through vengeance but ultimately as accountability: respecting rule of law alongside liberties like freedom of speech or conscience, which we hold tight to as a reminder of fellow humanity – the cornerstones of free society, and all people worldwide.

“Respect for each other has gently guided my life, whether when treating patients as a surgeon before but now as a Member of the Welsh Parliament representing South Wales West. We must always try to look for goodness during terrible times, and find within ourselves the better angels of our nature.”

Manhunt

Indian forces on Wednesday (April 23) launched a manhunt for the assailants.

Tens of thousands of police and soldiers fanned out across the region and erected additional checkpoints.

Police called the assault a “terror attack” and blamed militants fighting against Indian rule.

Indian defence minister Rajnath Singh vowed to “not only trace those who perpetrated the attack but also trace those who conspired to commit this nefarious act on our soil”.

Kashmir Resistance, a previously unknown militant group, claimed responsibility for the attack on social media.

The group said Indian authorities had settled over 85,000 “outsiders” in the region and claimed that those targeted on Tuesday were not “ordinary tourists” but “were linked to and affiliated with Indian security agencies.”

The group’s messages could not be independently verified.

Earlier this month, the local government told its legislature that 83,742 Indians were granted rights to buy land and property in Kashmir in the last two years.

Officials said 24 of the people killed were Indian tourists. One was from Nepal, and another was a local tourist guide.

Condolences

Separately, soldiers killed two suspected militants in a gunfight after they tried to cross into the Indian side from Pakistan-controlled Kashmir in the northwestern Baramulla district along the heavily militarised Line of Control dividing the region, the Indian army said in a statement.

There was no independent confirmation of the deaths. Pakistan extended condolences to the victims’ families.

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 the region has drawn millions of visitors to its Himalayan foothills.

Indian officials have claimed that as a sign of normalcy returning, despite the presence of ubiquitous security checkpoints, armored vehicles and patrolling soldiers.

Until Tuesday, tourists were not targeted. Following the attack, panicked tourists started to leave Kashmir.

Tributes

On Wednesday, India’s powerful home minister, Amit Shah, attended a ceremony at a police command centre in Srinagar, where the dead tourists were paid floral tributes.

Mr Shah vowed to “come down heavily on the perpetrators with the harshest consequences”.

Later, he visited the site of the killing at Baisaran meadow, some three 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.

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 has used heavy-handed tactics to maintain its control over the region, including 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 shortly before a visit to India by then-US president Bill Clinton.

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 the Kashmir Valley, the heart of anti-India rebellion.

Fighting between government forces and rebels has largely shifted to remote areas of the Jammu region, including Rajouri, Poonch and Kathua, where Indian troops have faced deadly attacks.