Authorities shut dozens of tourist resorts in Indian-controlled Kashmir following a deadly attack

SRINAGAR – Authorities successful Indian-controlled Kashmir person temporarily unopen much than fractional of tourer resorts successful the scenic Himalayan portion aft past week’s deadly onslaught connected tourists raised tensions betwixt India and Pakistan and led to an intensifying information crackdown successful Kashmir.

At slightest 2 constabulary officers and 3 administrative officials, who spoke connected information of anonymity successful keeping with departmental policy, said Tuesday that the determination to unopen 48 of the 87 authorities authorized resorts was a precautionary information measure. They did not specify for however agelong these places would beryllium retired of bounds for visitors.

The determination comes a week aft gunmen killed 26 people, astir of them Indian tourists, adjacent the edifice municipality of Pahalgam.

India has described the massacre arsenic a “terror attack” and accused Pakistan of backing it. Pakistan has denied immoderate transportation to the attack, and it was claimed by a antecedently chartless militant radical calling itself the Kashmir Resistance.

Some tourists who survived the massacre person told Indian media that the gunmen singled retired Hindu men and changeable them from adjacent range. The dormant included a Nepalese national and a section Muslim pony thrust operator.

The massacre acceptable disconnected tit-for-tat diplomatic measures betwixt India and Pakistan that included cancellation of visas and recalling of diplomats. New Delhi besides suspended a important h2o sharing pact with Islamabad and ordered its borderline unopen with Pakistan. In response, Pakistan has closed its airspace to Indian airlines.

The portion is divided betwixt India and Pakistan and claimed by some successful its entirety. New Delhi describes each militancy successful Indian-controlled Kashmir arsenic Pakistan-backed terrorism. Pakistan denies this, and galore Muslim Kashmiris see the militants to beryllium portion of a home-grown state struggle.

Indian tourism has flourished successful Kashmir aft Prime Minister Narendra Modi's authorities promoted visits to the portion with the anticipation of showing rising tourism numbers arsenic a motion of renewed stableness there.

Millions of visitors get successful Kashmir to spot its Himalayan foothills and exquisitely decorated houseboats, contempt regular skirmishes betwixt insurgents and authorities forces. According to authoritative data, adjacent to 3 cardinal tourists visited the portion successful 2024, a emergence from 2.71 cardinal visitors successful 2023 and 2.67 cardinal successful 2022.

But past week's onslaught has near galore tourists frightened and immoderate person near the region. Widespread cancellations are besides being reported by circuit operators, with immoderate estimates putting the fig astatine much than 1 million.

As tensions escalate, cross-border firing betwixt soldiers of India and Pakistan has besides accrued on the Line of Control, the de facto frontier that separates Kashmiri territory betwixt the 2 rivals. On Tuesday, the Indian service successful a connection said it had responded to “unprovoked” tiny arms occurrence from aggregate Pakistan service posts for a 5th consecutive night.

There was nary remark from Pakistan, and the incidents could not beryllium independently verified. In the past, each broadside has accused the different of starting borderline skirmishes successful the Himalayan region.

Meanwhile authorities forces successful the portion person detained and questioned astir 2,000 people, officials and residents said. Many of the detained are erstwhile rebels warring against Indian regularisation and others who officials picture arsenic “over crushed workers” of militants, a word authorities usage for the suspected civilian associates of the insurgents.

Soldiers person besides detonated explosives successful the household homes of astatine slightest 9 suspected militants crossed Kashmir.

The region’s apical pro-India leaders person supported enactment against suspected militants but besides questioned the demolitions.

Omar Abdullah, the region’s main minister, said Monday that immoderate heavy-handed tactics against civilians should beryllium avoided. “We should not instrumentality immoderate measurement that volition alienate people,” Abdullah told the region's lawmakers during a legislative session.

Ruhullah Mehdi, a lawmaker from the portion successful India’s nationalist parliament, termed the demolitions of homes arsenic “collective punishment.”

Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This worldly whitethorn not beryllium published, broadcast, rewritten oregon redistributed without permission.