Pahalgam terror attack: Two locals who visited Pakistan suspected to be among terrorists involved in killing 26 people

Two local Kashmiri men are suspected to be among the six terrorists who opened indiscriminate fire at tourists in Pahalgam on Tuesday, killing 26 and injuring several others, a Hindu report said.

The two local men have been identified as Adil Guri of Anantnag and Ahsan from Pulwama district in south Kashmir. The report also said that both of them had visited Pakistan in 2018.

“The two infiltrated recently with three to four other Pakistani men. We had certain inputs about their movement,” the Hindu report said, quoting a government source.

Sketches of three suspects released

Security agencies have released sketches of three men suspected to be involved in the gruesome attack. The trio, identified as Pakistanis, are Asif Fauji, Suleman Shah and Abu Talha, officials said.

The sketches were prepared with the help of the survivors' description of the attackers, they said. The three terrorists also had code names — Moosa, Yunus and Asif — and were involved in terror-related incidents in Poonch.

The Resistance Front (TRF), a shadow outfit of Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorist group, claimed responsibility for the attack, according to reports. Mint couldn’t verify the reports circulating on social media.

‘Go, tell Modi’: Chilling message of terrorist

According to one of the survivors the terrorists left a chilling message for Prime Minister Narendra Modi before opening fire on the tourists.

The victim, Manjunath Rao, was vacationing in the valley with his wife and young son when terrorists opened fire on tourists in the scenic Baisaran meadow, a popular destination often referred to as 'mini Switzerland'.

The wife of the Karnataka businessman who visited the Baisaran area with their young son, recounted the horror to India Today.

Pallavi recounted the chilling moments of the attack. “Three of us – me, my husband and our son – had gone to Kashmir. It happened around 1.30 pm, I think. We were at Pahalgam. He died on the spot, in front of my eyes,” she said, adding, “It still feels like a bad dream.”

Chilling memories of Chittisinghpura Sikh massacre

The Pahalgam attack is a stark reminder of the Chittisinghpura massacre in which 36 Sikhs were killed by terrorists in Chittisinghpura village of Anantnag district on March 20, 2000. The attack happened on the eve of the then US president Bill Clinton's state visit to India from March 21 to March 25.

What we know about gunmen

Two to three gunmen, reportedly in military fatigues, opened fire at several tourists enjoying pony rides in Pahalgam. Preliminary probes suggested that four to six terrorists carried out the Pahalgam attack.

A News18 report said that M4 bullets were found at the crime scene. Witness accounts suggested that AK-47s and other military-grade automatic weapons were used.

Agencies are probing whether sniper-like training was given to the terrorists, the report stated.

(With inputs from agencies)