AP PHOTOS: Clashes between India and Pakistan upend lives in a Kashmiri village
GINGAL, India (AP) — Mohammad Younis Khan was among 40 residents seeking shelter in a cowshed when shelling began in Gingal, a scenic mountain village in north Kashmir on the Indian-controlled side of the de facto border with Pakistan . Men, women and children sought refuge in the 3-meter-by-4.2 meter (10-feet-by-14 feet) space, which they felt offered greater safety than their brick and cement homes. Huddled together, they heard the swoosh and thunder of the projectiles being fired from both sides of the border. When they heard a very loud sound from just outside the shelter, they held their breath and expected the worst. But the projectile had landed on soft earth and detonated a couple of feet below the ground sparing them. Younis, who could tell the outgoing projectiles from the incoming ones by the sound they made, described the impact outside 'as if a lightning bolt had struck the ground.' They all feared that India and Pakistan were at war and they would not survive the night. 'We were so scared that we didn't dare go out to a water tap just four feet away from the door even when the children were crying of thirst,' Younis told The Associated Press. Mohammad Shafi and four family members were having dinner in their kitchen when they heard explosions and ran outside. They had just managed to reach the road when they saw a blast damage the kitchen they had been dining in. They ran down a slope and hid among trees. It was the night of May 8, and the shelling had intensified from the previous evening. Nasreena Begum rushed out, leaving her special-needs son behind as he was too heavy to be carried. She was tormented but was relieved to find him safe at home the following morning. Most residents left Gingal for the town of Baramulla about 40 kilometers (25 miles) south, where some saw their homes destroyed on TV or social media. Naseer Ahmad, a Jammu & Kashmir police officer posted in south Kashmir, learned via Facebook that shelling damaged his Paranpillan home, instantly recognizable by the surprisingly intact large walnut tree beside it. Following the May 10 ceasefire, residents of Gingal returned to assess the damage, finding their homes riddled with shrapnel. Those with intact or livable houses sheltered neighbors who had lost theirs. About 160 kilometers (100 miles) south, the usually bustling tourist spot of Pahalgam is now quiet, its residents facing a different challenge. It was here when, on April 22, militants killed 26 tourists in the worst assault in years targeting civilians in the restive region. Pahalgam, usually lively with May holidaymakers, is now deserted. Businesses are shuttered and tourist attractions within a 30-kilometer (18-mile) radius of the massacre site are closed to locals and visitors alike. Back in Gingal, Younis prays for peace. 'Where will we go if the clashes continue? Drones can reach anywhere,' he said. 'Those who want war have never experienced it.' ____ Bhatia reported from Dharamshala, India.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles

CNN
28 minutes ago
- CNN
In pictures: Passenger plane crashes in India
More than 200 people are feared dead after a passenger plane crashed into a residential area shortly after taking off from the Indian city of Ahmedabad on Thursday. The Air India flight was bound for London. There were 242 passengers and crew members aboard. The aircraft's signal was lost less than a minute after takeoff, at an altitude of 625 feet, according to FlightRadar24 data. The plane then started to descend with a vertical speed of -475 feet per minute, the data showed. India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the plane crash had 'stunned and saddened' the country. He described the incident as 'heartbreaking beyond words,' adding that he was in touch with the authorities involved in the disaster.


CBS News
an hour ago
- CBS News
These are the deadliest plane crashes in the last 25 years
Air India plane crashes shortly after takeoff, carrying more than 240 people A London-bound Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner crashed in India on Thursday with 242 people on board the Air India plane. Police said there are no known survivors and authorities said there are likely casualties on the ground in the city of Ahmedabad. Ahmedabad Police Commissioner G.S. Malik told The Associated Press that the "exact figures on casualties" were still being determined. Air India said 169 Indian nationals, 53 British nationals, one Canadian national and seven Portuguese nationals were on board. Here is a list of the deadliest plane disasters in the 21st century, excluding the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks: 2014: Flight MH17 shot down over Ukraine On July 17, 2014, Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 was shot down over rebel-held eastern Ukraine en route to Kuala Lumpur from Amsterdam. All 298 people aboard the Boeing 777 were killed, including 193 Dutch nationals. In May this year the U.N. aviation agency blamed Russia for the downing of the jetliner, a ruling Moscow dismissed as "biased." 2003: Military plane crash in Iran On Feb. 19, 2003, a Russian-made Ilyushin Il-76 belonging to Iran's elite Revolutionary Guard Corps crashed near Kerman in the southeast of the country. All 275 people on board were killed. The aircraft disappeared from radars an hour after takeoff, after sending a request to airport control in Kerman to land due to bad weather. 2001: American Airlines Flight 587 On Nov. 12, 2001, an American Airlines Airbus A300 crashed in the New York borough of Queens shortly after taking off, killing all 260 on board and five people on the ground. Flight 587 was bound for Saint-Domingue, in the Dominican Republic, departing from New York's John F. Kennedy airport. The wreckage of American Airlines flight 587 burns on Nov. 12, 2001, in the Rockaway neighborhood of the Queens section of New York City. NYPD/Getty Images 2018: Algerian military plane crash On April 11, 2018, an Ilyushin Il-76 heavy transport aircraft crashed shortly after taking off from a military base south of the capital Algiers, killing all 257 people on board. The passengers were mostly military personnel and members of their families. An Algerian military plane is seen after crashing near an airport outside the capital, Algiers, on April 11, 2018, in this still image taken from a video. Ennahar TV/Handout via Reuters 2014: MH370 disappears On March 8, 2014, Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 disappeared on its way from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing with 239 people aboard. Employees of environmental protection and coastal cleanup organisations look for debris from Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 on a beach in Sainte-Marie de la Reunion, on the French Reunion Island in the Indian Ocean, on Aug. 10, 2015. RICHARD BOUHET/AFP/Getty Images Despite an intense search in the southern Indian Ocean, the Boeing 777-200 was never found. Earlier this year, a new search for the plane was launched more than a decade after the plane went missing, Malaysian authorities said. 2009: Air France crash in the Atlantic On June 1, 2009, an Air France Airbus A330 disappeared over the Atlantic in a zone of turbulence after taking off from Rio de Janeiro on flight AF447 to Paris with 228 passengers and crew on board. The Brazilian Navy picks debris from Air France flight AF447 out of the Atlantic Ocean, some 745 miles (1,200 km) northeast of Recife, in this photo distributed by the Navy in Recife, northeastern Brazil, June 9, 2009. REUTERS It took two years to find the wreckage of the plane. 2002: China Airlines crashes into the sea On May 25, 2002, a China Airlines Boeing 747-200 smashed into the Taiwan Strait, killing all 225 people on board. The aircraft, headed for Hong Kong, disintegrated mid-flight some 20 minutes after taking off from Taipei.


CBS News
an hour ago
- CBS News
Air India plane crashes in Ahmedabad; Boeing 787-8 with 242 people on board slams into buildings
An Air India passenger plane carrying 242 passengers and crew crashed in the western Indian city of Ahmedabad on Thursday, soon after departing for London's Gatwick airport, the airline and officials said. A police official told The Associated Press there were no known survivors from the plane, and there were also likely casualties on the ground as the aircraft careened into buildings. "Air India confirms that flight AI171, from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick, was involved in an accident today after take-off," Air India said in a statement posted on social media. The airline said that the plane, a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, departed at 1:38 p.m. local time carrying 242 people. "Of these, 169 are Indian nationals, 53 are British nationals, 1 Canadian national and 7 Portuguese nationals. The injured are being taken to the nearest hospitals," Air India said. Later on Thursday, Air India CEO Campbell Wilson said a "a special team of caregivers" from Air India was on its way to Ahmedabad to provide additional support. "Investigations will take time, but anything we can do now, we are doing," Wilson said. "We understand that people are eager for information. Please know that we will continue to share accurate and timely information as soon as we can, but anything we report must be accurate and not speculative. We owe that to everyone involved. For now, our teams are working around the clock to support passengers, crew and their families - as well as investigators - however we can." Firefighters work at the site of an Air India plane crash, in India's northwest city of Ahmedabad, in Gujarat state, June 12, 2025. Ajit Solanki /AP Gatwick Airport confirmed in a statement that flight AI171 had "crashed on departure from Ahmedabad Airport today." The airport said the plane had been due to land at Gatwick, which is just south of London, at 6:25 p.m. local time (1:25 p.m. Eastern). "It appears there are no survivors in the plane crash," the AP quoted Ahmedabad Police Commissioner G.S. Malik as saying. "As the plane has fallen in a residential area which also had offices, some locals would have also died." He told the AP that the "exact figures on casualties" were still being determined. A spokesperson for Boeing told CBS News the company was "in contact with Air India regarding Flight 171 and stand ready to support them. Our thoughts are with the passengers, crew, first responders and all affected." The incident appears to be the first of its kind for the Dreamliner, according to Boeing's April 2025 statistical summary of incidents involving its aircraft. The National Transportation Safety Board said it would "be leading a team of U.S. investigators traveling to India to assist the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau with its investigation into the crash." The Federal Aviation Administration said that "when an international incident occurs, that government leads the investigation. In the event assistance is requested, the NTSB is the official U.S. representative and the FAA provides technical support. We stand ready to launch a team immediately in coordination with the NTSB." Unverified video shared online by Indian network NDTV purportedly shows the passenger jet flying low over buildings before disappearing behind them. There is then a large explosion. In the unverified video, no fire or explosion can be seen on the aircraft before it disappears. Local media reported the plane had crashed into a building housing medical students. The head of India's Directorate General of Civil Aviation, Faiz Ahmed Kidwai, told The Associated Press that flight AI171 crashed five minutes after taking off. Live flight tracking website Flight Radar said a final signal was received from Flight AI171 just seconds after it took off. The flight path on Flight Radar showed the aircraft traveling southwest from the airport a short distance before the path stopped, and the site said initial data showed the aircraft reached a maximum barometric altitude of 625 feet before it started to descend. "At this point, it's very, very, very early, we don't know a whole lot," Aviation consultant John M. Cox told the AP. "But the 787 has very extensive flight data monitoring - the parameters on the flight data recorder are in the thousands - so once we get that recorder, they'll be able to know pretty quickly what happened." India's Minister of Civil Aviation Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu said in a statement posted on social media that he was "shocked and devastated to learn about the flight crash in Ahmedabad." Firefighters work at the scene of a plane crash in India's northwestern city of Ahmedabad, in Gujarat state, June12, 2025. Air India confirmed that an Ahmedabad to London flight was involved in "an incident." Ajit Solanki/AP Kinjarapu said officials were "on highest alert" and that he was "personally monitoring this situation" and had "directed all aviation and emergency response agencies to take swift and coordinated action." "Rescue teams have been mobilized, and all efforts are being made to ensure medical aid and relief support are being rushed to the site," Kinjarapu said. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said "the tragedy in Ahmedabad has stunned and saddened us. It is heartbreaking beyond words. In this sad hour, my thoughts are with everyone affected by it. Have been in touch with Ministers and authorities who are working to assist those affected." "The scenes emerging of a London-bound plane carrying many British nationals crashing in the Indian city of Ahmedabad are devastating," U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer said in a statement.