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Seventeen Indian soldiers and four militants killed in Kashmir attack Seventeen Indian soldiers and four militants killed in Kashmir attack
(about 1 hour later)
Militants attacked an Indian army brigade headquarters near the de facto border with Pakistan on Sunday, killing at least 17 soldiers as the region suffered its worst violence since 2010. Militants in Kashmir have killed 17 Indian soldiers in an early morning raid on an army camp near the disputed border with Pakistan.
Four “fidayeen” – or commando-style gunmen willing to fight to the death – had been confirmed killed after penetrating the base in Uri near the Line of Control with Pakistan, an Indian army spokesman said. The assault at around 5.30am on Sunday is among the deadliest single attack on military forces in the history of the troubled region.
The encounter resulted in “heavy casualties. We salute the sacrifice of 17 soldiers who were martyred in the operation”, the army said in a statement. Four “fidayeen” – highly-trained commando units who storm security installations on what are essentially suicide missions – were killed, according to the Indian army.
“In the counter action, four terrorists have been eliminated and combing operations are in progress,” the statement said. Security has been heavy and tensions high in Kashmir after more than two months of clashes between protesters and police that have left more than 80 civilians dead and thousands injured.
The army deployed helicopters to evacuate 20 soldiers who had been injured in the dawn attack that was followed by an hours-long gunfight, army sources said. In a statement, the Indian army attributed the high casualties on Sunday morning to a fire that broke out during the attack and consumed temporary shelters and tents in the brigade headquarters.
The raid comes amid heightened tension in India’s only Muslim-majority region, which has faced more than two months of protests following the 8 July killing of a popular separatist field commander. #WATCH #Firstvisuals: Terrorist attack at army's Brigade HQs in Uri (J&K). Encounter underway. (visuals deferred) pic.twitter.com/CG8ur8Rkor
At least 78 civilians have been killed and thousands injured in street clashes with the Indian security forces, who have been criticised by human rights groups for using excessive force including shotguns that fire pellets that have blinded people. More than a dozen soldiers are understood to be injured, some of them critically.
Home minister Rajnath Singh said in a series of Twitter posts that he had spoken to the region’s political and military leadership and had instructed senior officials to monitor the situation. The militants are thought to have recently crossed over the nearby “line of control” with Pakistan.
He cancelled planned trips to Russia and the US. An emergency meeting of senior ministers and security officials is being held in Delhi and alerts have been issued for airports across the country.
“We have activated the entire force in and around Uri sector to step up security and launch combing operations,” a senior ministry official said. The Indian defence minister, Manohar Parrikar, and army chief Dalbir Singh are making their way to Srinigar, the region’s summer capital.
“It is clearly a case of cross-border terror attack. We don’t know which militant group is involved,” this official added.
There has been no independent claim of responsibility.
The military death toll was the worst in Indian-ruled Kashmir since a raid in December 2014, also near Uri which is to the west of the region’s main city of Srinagar, in which eight soldiers and three police were killed.
India accuses Pakistan of supporting militant attacks in its northernmost state of Jammu and Kashmir, which they both claim in full but rule only in part.India accuses Pakistan of supporting militant attacks in its northernmost state of Jammu and Kashmir, which they both claim in full but rule only in part.
Prime minister Narendra Modi recently raised the stakes in their decades-old feud by expressing support for separatists within Pakistan.Prime minister Narendra Modi recently raised the stakes in their decades-old feud by expressing support for separatists within Pakistan.
Pakistan denies any role in cross-border terrorism, and has called on the United Nations and the international community to investigate atrocities it alleges have been committed by the security forces in Indian-ruled Kashmir.Pakistan denies any role in cross-border terrorism, and has called on the United Nations and the international community to investigate atrocities it alleges have been committed by the security forces in Indian-ruled Kashmir.
Nawaz Sharif, the Pakistan prime minister, has pledged to “emphatically highlight” violence in Kashmir in a speech during this week’s UN general assembly meeting.
Earlier this year militants also stormed an air base at Pathankot, in the northern Indian state of Punjab, leading to a freeze in relations between India and Pakistan.
Pakistan denies any role in cross-border terrorism, and has called on the United Nations and the international community to investigate atrocities it alleges have been committed by the security forces in Indian-ruled Kashmir.
Relations between the nuclear-armed neighbours have been on edge since a January attack on an Indian air force base in Punjab, near the border with Pakistan, that killed seven uniformed men.Relations between the nuclear-armed neighbours have been on edge since a January attack on an Indian air force base in Punjab, near the border with Pakistan, that killed seven uniformed men.
India has blamed a Pakistan-based militant group for that attack but, after initial progress, an attempt to conduct a joint investigation has lost momentum. India has blamed a Pakistan-based militant group for that attack but, after initial progress, an attempt to conduct a joint investigation lost momentum.
The two sides have frozen a tentative peace dialogue.The two sides have frozen a tentative peace dialogue.