Gunmen kill seven people working on a strategic tunnel project in Kashmir

Villagers carry the body of Kashmiri doctor Shahnawaz who was among those killed in Srinagar, yesterday

Gunmen fatally shot at least seven people working on a strategic tunnel project in Indian-controlled Kashmir and injured at least five others, officials said yesterday.

Police blamed militants who have been fighting against Indian rule for decades for the “terror attack” at a camp for construction workers near the disputed region’s resort town of Sonamarg. No rebel group immediately claimed responsibility.

Police said at least two gunmen fired “indiscriminately” at officials and workers associated with the construction, leaving two dead on the spot. At least 10 others were taken to hospital, where five more died. The attack came shortly after workers returned to their lodgings on Sunday night. There was no immediate independent confirmation of the attack.

The dead included five non-local laborers and officials, one Kashmiri worker and a Kashmiri doctor.

Reinforcements of police and soldiers launched search operations in the area to nab the attackers.

Omar Abdullah, the region’s top elected official, condemned the attack in a post on social media platform X, calling it “dastardly & cowardly.”

A key Kashmiri resistance leader said he was “deeply saddened by the outrageous killings.”

“Another grim reminder of the unending cycle of violence and uncertainty we are suffering for decades,” Mirwaiz Umar Farooq wrote on X.

Hundreds of people, mostly non-local laborers, are working on the ambitious tunnel project that aims to connect the Kashmir Valley with Ladakh, a cold desert region that is isolated for half the year because of massive snowfalls. Experts say the tunnel project is important to the military, which will gain significantly improved capabilities to operate in Ladakh.

The strategically important region shares de facto borders with Pakistan and China, and Indian and Chinese soldiers have been engaged in a military standoff there since 2020. Both countries have stationed tens of thousands of soldiers there, backed by artillery, tanks and fighter jets.

Sunday’s attack was the second attack on a non-local worker in the region since a largely powerless local government was sworn into office Wednesday, following the first local elections since India stripped the region of semi-autonomy five years ago. MDT/AP