At least 7 Amarnath Yatra pilgrims killed in terror attack in Kashmir

Hindu pilgrims travelling either on ponies or on foot, to the holy cave of Lord Shiva during an annual pilgrimage, in Pishutop, 114 km (71 miles) southeast of Srinagar June 25, 2012. Every year, hundreds of thousands of pilgrims trek through treacherous mountains in Kashmir, along icy streams, glacier-fed lakes and frozen passes, to reach the Amarnath cave, located at an altitude of 3,800 metres (12,467 feet). There, devotees worship an ice formation that Hindus believed to be a symbol of Lord Shiva. REUTERS/Fayaz Kabli (INDIAN-ADMINISTERED KASHMIR - Tags: RELIGION SOCIETY TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTR344W6

At least seven Amarnath Yatra pilgrims were killed in a terrorist attack in Kashmir on Monday evening.

Fifteen others were injured, including two security personnel, when terrorists opened fire on a bus carrying the pilgrims in Bontengoo, near Anantnag, Jammu and Kashmir, around 8.20pm.

The terrorists struck when the police were escorting the bus, according to CNN-News18.

Director General, Jammu and Kashmir Police, Munir Khan said that the attackers targeted the police and not the pilgrims.

#Visuals from attack site: 2 Amarnath yatra pilgrims killed, many injured after terrorists attacked their bus in Batingu of J&K's Anantnag. pic.twitter.com/oAlXQseroo

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— ANI (@ANI_news) July 10, 2017

"Seventeen pilgrims were travelling from Baltal to Mir Bazar when they were fired upon. Two pilgrims died on the spot," a senior CRPF officer told the channel. "Troops of our 90 battalion and 40 battalion have been rushed to the spot."

A police officer told PTI that the militants attacked an armoured car of the police. When the police fired back, the militants fled, firing indiscriminately.

"In the firing by militants, seven people, five of them women, were killed, and another seven injured," the official said.

Some reports suggested that there were two separate attacks, but this is yet to be confirmed.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi put out a series of tweets condemning the "dastardly" attack. "India will never get bogged down by such cowardly attacks & the evil designs of hate," he said.

Pained beyond words on the dastardly attack on peaceful Amarnath Yatris in J&K. The attack deserves strongest condemnation from everyone. — Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) July 10, 2017

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti also condemned the attack while her predecessor and National Conference leader Omar Abdullah reacted on Twitter:

The one thing we had all feared this year during the yatra. In spite of recent successes against militants & unprecedented force presence. https://t.co/NUkScKdGfl — Omar Abdullah (@abdullah_omar) July 10, 2017

Jammu and Kashmir tourism minister Priya Sethi told CNN-News18 that the bus was unregistered and was not travelling with the convoy.

Jitendra Singh, Minister of State in the Prime Minister's Office, called the incidents "most condemnable".

"It is not just an attack on pilgrims but an attack on the composite culture of Kashmir," he said.

The annual yatra to the Amarnath cave shrine began from Jammu last week amid tight security.

The last time pilgrims on this route were attacked was in August 2000, when militants massacred 30 people in Pahalgam in the same district as today's attack.

Kashmir has been tense this past week amid anticipation of violence on the first death anniversary of Burhan Wani, the Hizbul Mujahideen commander who was killed in an encounter with security forces on July 8 last year.