COUNTDOWN TO ACT DECISIVELY TO DEMOLISH ROOT CAUSE FOREVER

PAHALGAM TERROR ATTACK AND RELIGION-TARGETED KILLINGS

- MAJ. GEN. J.K.S. PARIHAR

In a shocking and religion-targeted killings in a brutal terrorist attack on innocent tourists in Pahalgam, south Kashmir, on 22nd April 2025, a massive concern and agony arose across the country and the globe. As reported,26 tourists were killed by the terror outfit TRF, one of the offshoots of Lashkar-e-Taiba and supported by HAMAS, as revealed in the early reports. The victims included one young Indian Navy officer who had gotten married just one week prior, one IB officer, at least two foreign nationals from Nepal and the UAE, and other civilians who were present. The Terrorists identified tourists by their religion before killing them. They employed the deadliest and prohibited weapons, such as the AK47 assault rifle, along with the M4 rifle recently used by the US armed forces in Afghanistan. The TRF obtained these weapons from Afghanistan through smuggling, undoubtedly with direct support from the Pakistan army, ISI, and terror outfits like Lashkare-Taiba. The Pahalgam terror attack on innocent tourists was the largest in Jammu and Kashmir since the Pulwama incident of 14 February 2019, marking a direct assault on the security forces.