Safety forces have launched a manhunt after gunmen opened hearth on vacationers and killed 26 folks in Indian-administered Kashmir’s worst assault on civilians in virtually 1 / 4 of a century.
All these killed in Tuesday’s assault have been listed as residents of India, apart from one man from Nepal.
An announcement issued within the identify of The Resistance Entrance (TRF), which is believed to be an offshoot of Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba, claimed accountability for the assault.
The assertion linked the assaults to the hundreds of residency permits being handed over to Indian residents, permitting them to settle in Kashmir. Al Jazeera couldn’t independently affirm the assertion’s authenticity.
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah stated the assault had been “a lot bigger than something we’ve seen directed at civilians” lately.
The our bodies of these killed have been dropped at Srinagar by a fleet of ambulances on Wednesday as army helicopters soared overhead, looking the forested mountain flanks for indicators of the attackers.
“This assault on our guests is an abomination,” Abdullah stated in an announcement.
The killings led to international condemnation.
United States President Donald Trump referred to as Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to supply “full assist to India to carry to justice the perpetrators of this heinous assault”.
China, which neighbours the troubled area, provided its “honest sympathies” to the households of these killed.
Authorities lately have promoted the mountainous area as a vacation vacation spot for snowboarding throughout winter and to flee the sweltering summer time warmth elsewhere in India.
About 3.5 million vacationers visited Kashmir final yr, largely home guests.
