New Delhi, India — Twenty-six people were killed and more than a dozen were injured after gunmen attacked a group of tourists in the Pahalgam area of Jammu-Kashmir, authorities reported Tuesday. The police have described the assault as a terrorist attack, one of the deadliest against civilians in the troubled region in recent years.
The militants, who have yet to claim responsibility, targeted the tourists in an area long conflicted by disputes over Indian governance. The attack coincided with a high-profile visit from U.S. Vice President JD Vance, drawing uncomfortable parallels to previous incidents when foreign dignitaries were in India during times of violence.
This incident recalls other grave attacks in the region, underlining the relentless volatility and ongoing conflicts that have troubled Kashmir for decades. For instance, on March 20, 2000, just before the arrival of then-President Bill Clinton, militants killed 36 members of the Sikh community in Chittisinghpora, with conflicting reports about the identity of the assailants.
The region has also seen significant attacks specifically targeting Hindu pilgrimages, such as in August 2000 when suspected militants killed more than 30 participants of the annual Amarnath Yatra, a pattern that persisted with attacks recorded during the pilgrimage in following years including 2001, 2002, and as recently as 2017.
On October 1, 2001, a suicide bomber targeted the Jammu and Kashmir State Legislature Complex in Srinagar, claiming the lives of 36 individuals. Another notable attack occurred on May 14, 2002, aligning with the visit of then-U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for South Asian Affairs Christina B. Rocca. Militants attacked a bus and a nearby military station in Kaluchak, resulting in the death of 36, including soldiers’ families.
Further, on March 23, 2003, suspected militants orchestrated a deadly assault on the minority Hindu community in Nadimarg village, leaving 24 dead. International tensions were notably strained after the September 18, 2016 attack by militants from the Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammed group, which resulted in the deaths of 19 Indian soldiers near the town of Uri.
More recently, on February 14, 2019, a militant with the Jaish-e-Mohammed group killed 40 Indian security personnel by ramming a car bomb into their convoy in Pulwama. This attack was one of the deadliest and escalated tensions significantly between India and Pakistan.
Amid all these tragedies, the region continues to suffer from a cycle of violence that undermines any efforts toward peace and stability. The continued loss of civilian life only exacerbates the challenges faced by those pushing for peaceful resolutions in the region. The Indian government and international actors keep searching for pathways to peace, but as recent events show, solutions remain elusive with the cost tragically visible in human lives.