Attack ahead of Amarnath yatra, during Vance's visit, likely aimed at shattering perception of peace

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A terrorist attack in Pahalgam, J&K, targeting tourists ahead of the Amarnath Yatra, is seen as an attempt to destabilize the region and undermine the perception of improved security. The attack, which resulted in casualties, aims to disrupt the growing tourism sector, a key economic driver, and draw international attention to the Kashmir issue.

SRINAGAR: Tuesday’s terrorist attack on tourists in J&K’s Pahalgam, ahead of Amarnath Yatra which attracts lakhs of Hindu tourists, is seen as aimed at blunting the steadily growing perception about the stabilisation of the situation post-abrogation of special status. The huge surge of tourists showed the gradual disappearance of the fear factor and rising confidence in the ability of security forces to thwart threats.

The return of peace in Kashmir has attracted lakhs of tourists to the Valley, encouraging even residents in remote areas to convert their homes into guesthouses. The region has seen major investment in the tourism sector, particularly in the construction of guesthouses and hotels. This year alone, Srinagar’s tulip garden has witnessed a massive influx of both domestic and foreign tourists since it opened on March 26. A record 8.1 lakh tourists have visited the garden in the past 26 days.

“Tourism, with statistics running into the millions, has been the single success story claimed by the govt -and hence the target of this attack. It also punishes the Kashmiris who have been reaping some economic dividends,” said Kashmir commentator Zafar Choudhary.

The attack also came amid growing frustration in Islamabad over the failure of its efforts to portray terrorism as a “just struggle for self-determination” and a homegrown affair, and was obviously aimed at getting the global spotlight trained on J&K.

Following Tuesday’s attack, local residents in Pahalgam held a candlelight march to condemn the violence.

“This is much bigger than anything we’ve seen directed at civilians in recent years,” chief minister Omar Abdullah said. The final death toll was still being verified, he added.

In eyewitness videos circulating on social media, a wounded woman can be seen crying, with a voiceover saying: “They shot her husband in the head.” A young woman recounted that they were eating bhelpuri when her husband was isolated and shot. She said she was pleading for help, crying: “Mere pati ko bachao.” Later, the same woman was seen sitting near the motionless body of her husband.

While violence has declined across much of the Kashmir Valley, deadly clashes between terrorists and security forces have shifted to the more remote districts of Jammu, including Rajouri, Poonch, and Kathua. In June 2024, nine people were killed – including a two-year-old child and a 14-year-old boy – and 41 others injured when terrorists ambushed a bus carrying pilgrims in Reasi district.

On Feb 14, 2019, a Jaish-e-Mohammed suicide bomber rammed his explosives-laden car into a CRPF bus in Pulwama, killing 40 personnel. The attack led to Balakot airstrikes.

Tuesday’s attack adds to a grim list of assaults in the region: more than 30 were killed and 60 wounded in a 2000 attack on the Amarnath base camp. In 2001, 13 were killed and 15 wounded in a similar attack on Amarnath pilgrims at Sheshnag, followed by another assault in 2002 that left 11 dead. In 2017, eight pilgrims were gunned down while returning from the Amarnath shrine. Most recently, a tourist couple from Rajasthan was injured in a shooting in Pahalgam in May 2023.

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