At least nine killed after attack on bus in Indian-administered Kashmir

Al Jazeera:

At least nine people have been killed and 33 others injured after a bus carrying Hindu pilgrims in Indian-administered Kashmir tumbled into a ravine after a suspected shooting attack, police said.

The crash happened on Sunday near Reasi town, in the south of the disputed territory, as the bus was returning from a popular Hindu shrine in the area.

“Militants ambushed the bus and fired at it indiscriminately. The bus fell into a gorge, leading to the death of nine pilgrims, and 33 are injured,” Reasi district’s police chief Mohita Sharma told reporters.

She said the rescue operation was completed and the injured were taken to Narayana Hospital and Reasi District Hospital.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack.

The bus was carrying pilgrims to the base camp of the Hindu temple Mata Vaishno Devi when it came under attack, senior administrative officer Vishesh Mahajan said.

India’s Opposition Congress party president Mallikarjun Kharge condemned the “gruesome terror attack” in a post on social media platform X.

Modi’s “chest-thumping propaganda of bringing peace and normalcy … rings hollow”, he said.