India troops killed in Kashmir, fear may inflame crisis

By Zahid Rafiq

SRINAGAR, Indian-held Kashmir

The killing of 17 Indian soldiers at their barracks in Indian-held Kashmir on Sunday morning has raised fears it could intensify already heightened tensions in the disputed Himalayan region.

India’s Director General for Military Operations Lt. General Ranbir Singh told reporters in Delhi said the four militants who were killed during the operation, which also injured 30, were foreign fighters carrying equipment that had Pakistani markings.

According to sources in the army, who spoke to Anadolu Agency on the condition of anonymity as they were not cleared to speak to media, the death toll in the Army is likely to go up.

The attack has come two-and-a-half months into a wave of protests against Indian rule in the region which has seen at least 86 civilians shot dead by Indian security forces and around 9,000 injured according to the health department.

While today’s militant attack happened in north Kashmir’s Uri, a garrison town that had not seen any protests, police officials in the region said they feared the incident would impact the situation on the ground in coming days.

“The army is right now in charge of south Kashmir and in north Kashmir and we can expect more killings of civilian protesters after today’s attack. It is natural that they are angry at the attack and they see the people supporting the militants and will vent their anger on the people,” a senior police official, who spoke to Anadolu Agency on the condition of anonymity as he is not authorized to speak to media.

The ongoing tensions were initially sparked by the killing of a popular Kashmiri militant commander by Indian forces on July 8.

The Jammu & Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti also warned the attack could make the situation worse.

“Unfortunately, people in Jammu and Kashmir, who are already mired in an agonizing situation, shall have to bear the maximum brunt of the fresh attempts being made to step up violence and trigger fresh bloodshed in the State,” Mufti said.

The attack is considered the worst such militant assault on Indian forces in Kashmir over the past two decades.

Timeline of major militant attacks on Indian forces:

Nov. 3 1999: Eight army men including a Major were killed when militants stormed the Badamibagh headquarters of the army’s 15 Corps in Srinagar. This was Kashmir's first 'fidayeen' attack - when fighters do not expect to return alive.

May 14, 2002: Three militants hijacked a tourist bus and then stormed the army cantonment at Kalucheck in Jammu. Three soldiers of the Indian army and at least 20 relatives of soldiers residing in the family quarters of the cantonment were killed.

July 22 2003: Eight Indian army personnel including a Brigadier were killed and 12 – including four generals, a brigadier and two colonels – were wounded when militants stormed an army camp at Akhnoor area in Jammu.

July 19 2008: Ten Indian Army soldiers were killed and 20 injured when militants used an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) to attack an Army convoy at Narbal on the Srinagar-Baramulla highway.

June 24 2013: Ten Indian Army soldiers were killed and 12 wounded when two militants attacked an army convoy at Hyderpora in Srinagar. The militants managed to escape after the attack.

Sep. 25 2013: Four policemen and three Indian Army soldiers were killed in twin attacks by militants in Jammu’s Samba and Kathua districts. The three militants first attacked a police station in Kathua and killed four policemen and then hijacked a vehicle and drove to Samba where they stormed into an army cantonment killing three soldiers including a senior officer. The three militants were also killed.

Dec. 5 2014: Eight Indian soldiers and three policemen were killed when six militants stormed army headquarters at Uri, near the Line of Control, the border that divides Kashmir into two parts controlled by India and Pakistan. The attack was claimed by Jaish-e-Mohammad, six of whose militants were also killed in the attack.

June 26 2016: Eight paramilitary personnel men were killed and 22 wounded when militants attacked a paramilitary convoy at Pampore, on the Srinagar-Jammu highway. Two militants were also killed in the attack.

Sep. 18 2016: At least 17 Indian soldiers killed and 30 injured when militants sneak into their base in Uri and launch attack using grenades and gunfire, marking the worst such attack in Indian-held Kashmir. The four militants were killed after an hours-long gun battle.