Seven Amarnath pilgrims killed, nine injured in terror attack in JK's Anantnag

JAMMU: In a rare attack on the Amarnath Yatra, terrorists killed seven pilgrims and injured nine others, including policemen, when they struck at a bus carrying them in Jammu and Kashmir's Anantang district. The militants also carried out two attacks on security forces in the area.

• Most of the deceased belonged to Gujarat and Maharashtra
• Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti visits hospital to meet he injured
• Sonia Gandhi condemns & expresses grief over Anantnag terror attack
•  Terrorist attack on Amarnath yatra is the most reprehensible act: Defence Minister Arun Jaitley
• Pained beyond words on the dastardly attack on peaceful Amarnath Yatris in J&K, says PM Modi

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

My thoughts are with all those who lost their loved ones in the attack in J&K. My prayers with the injured. — Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) July 10, 2017

India will never get bogged down by such cowardly attacks & the evil designs of hate.

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) July 10, 2017

• Bus deflected out of security convoy without informing anyone, later attacked by terrorists
• Pilgrims who lost their lives in Anantnag attack were from Gujarat

Bus, when attacked was without any security cover as it had stopped midway without informing any security official- Top Sources @abpnewstv — Ashish ABP News (@AshishSinghLIVE) July 10, 2017

• Police confirms death of seven Amarnath Yatra pilgrims in terror attack in Anantnag, 15 injured: ANI
• The bus was carrying pilgrims back from Baltal after performing the yatra.
• A CRPF statement said the bus was not part of the official yatra and not registered with the Amarnath Shrine Board.
• "Some gunshots were heard on Jammu-Srinagar Highway near Batengoo, two yatris have been killed, four others sustained injuries," a police source said.
• Senior minister in the Mehbooba Mufti-led government Nayeem Akhtar termed the attack a "dark patch in the history of Kashmir".
• National Conference leader Omar Abdullah was quick to react and said: "The attack cannot be condemned strongly enough."
• Abdullah added that such an attack was expected in spite of recent successes against militants by security forces.
• "The one thing we had all feared this year during the yatra. In spite of recent successes against militants and unprecedented force presence," Omar Abdullah tweeted.
• Reports from the area said the firing took place near Khanabal chowk and the firing was still on.

#WATCH Visuals from Anantnag attack site: 2 Amarnath yatra pilgrims killed, many injured after terrorists attacked their bus in Batingu(J&K) pic.twitter.com/DZORy6DWvE — ANI (@ANI_news) July 10, 2017

• Terrorists also fired at police party in Anantnag's Bantegoo area.
• The Amarnath yatra was resumed from Jammu on Sunday after a day-long suspension due to apprehensions of a law-and-order situation in the Kashmir Valley.

Over 1.34 lakh pilgrims have so far paid their obeisance to the ice-lingam of Lord Shiva at the cave shrine at an altitude of 3,888 metres in the south Kashmir Himalayas. The yatra began in the backdrop of an intelligence warning of a terror attack, which prompted the authorities to mobilise the "highest level" of security measures, including satellite-tracking. The pilgrimage is scheduled to conclude on the Shravan Purnima (Raksha Bandhan) on August 7. The cave shrine is located at a distance of 46 kms from Pahalgam and 14 kms from Baltal. (More details awaited)