21 civilians killed in J&K in four days of India-Pakistan conflict
Twenty-two Indian civilians, including five children, lost their lives in Jammu and Kashmir in four days of the military action between India and Pakistan, said police and district officials.
Five members of Indian armed forces were also killed in action between Wednesday and Saturday.
India and Pakistan reached an agreement to put an end to the skirmishes that escalated on May 7 with the Indian military strikes – codenamed Operation Sindoor – on what it claimed were terrorist camps in response to the Pahalgam terror attack.
The Pakistan Army had retaliated to the strikes by repeatedly shelling Indian villages along the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir.
The highest number of casualties was reported from the Jammu region of the Union Territory. Fifteen persons died in Poonch district, which came under heavy artillery firing from the Pakistan Army.
Among the dead were Zain Ali and his sister Urwa Fatima. The 14-year-old twins, both students of Class 5, were killed on May 7 when an artillery shell landed outside their home in Poonch town, just as the family was leaving for a safer area. The children's father Rameez Khan was injured in the shelling.
A seven-year-old girl, Maryam Khatoon, was also killed by a shell that day when she was sitting in the compound of her house in Poonch town.
In Mankot village in Poonch district, 32-year-old Balvinder Kaur was killed on Wednesday as the area came under heavy artillery fire. A mother of three children, Kaur's youngest child is just a year and a half old.
A 46-year-old cleric, Qari Muhammad Iqbal, who taught young children at Madrasa Zia-ul-Uloom in Poonch was also killed on May 7. Following his killing, several television channels had identified him as a 'terrorist' who had been 'neutralised' by Indian strikes on Pakistan on May 7.
The cleric's family strongly objected to the allegations. The Poonch Police issued a statement, clarifying that Iqbal, was a 'respected religious figure in the local community and had no affiliation with any terror outfit'.
Two shopkeepers in Poonch were killed by shells on Wednesday. Amreek Singh, 55, the sole breadwinner in his family, ran a small grocery shop. He was killed when he went out to open his shop. He is survived by two daughters and a son. Ranjit Singh, a 48-year-old local shopkeeper, who was outside Amreek Singh's shop at the time, was also killed.
Amarjeet Singh, a 54-year-old retired soldier, was killed after he was hit by splinters of a shell when he was on his way home from a gurdwara on Wednesday morning.
Six others died in Poonch that day, including a 13-year-old child, Vihaan Bhargav.
On Saturday, 56-year-old Rashida Bi was killed when her house was hit by a shell in Kanghra-Galhutta village of Poonch.
The sole civilian casualty reported in the Kashmir valley was from Baramulla district. Nargis Begum, a 47-year-old housewife, was killed in cross-border shelling in Uri area. Begum died while trying to move her 14-year-old daughter, who has a heart condition, to a safer area.
Two residents of Bihar were killed on Saturday when shells hit an industrial area in Rajouri district – two-year-old Aisha Noor and 35-year-old Muhammad Shohib.
The same day, Raj Kumar Thappa, the additional district development commissioner, Rajouri, was killed when a shell hit his official residence.
Non-civilian deaths
On Wednesday, Lance Naik Dinesh Kumar of the Army was killed in Pakistani shelling in Poonch.
Sunil Kumar, 25, a rifleman of J&K Light Infantry, died of wounds suffered during overnight gunfire and shelling in RS Pura sector on Saturday.
Sergeant Surendra Kumar Moga, a 36-year-old medical assistant attached with the Indian Air Force's 36 Wing, was killed in a Pakistani strike in Udhampur on May 10.
The same day, Border Security Force Sub-Inspector Mohammad Imteyaz was killed in the RS Pura sector of Jammu due to shelling.
Pawan Kumar, a resident of Himachal Pradesh and an Army subedar major, was killed in the Krishna Ghari sector of Poonch on May 10.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Mint
38 minutes ago
- Mint
Shashi Tharoor-led delegation ends US visit a powerful message – ‘world knows the truth now'
The multi-party parliamentary delegation led by Congress leader Shashit Tharoor wrapped up its visit to the US after meeting with Vice President J D Vance and Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau among political and diplomatic leaders, to drive home India's strong resolve to combat terrorism emanating from Pakistan. The delegation was on the last leg of a multi-nation tour to brief key interlocutors about Operation Sindoor that India launched in retaliation to the 22 April Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 people, mostly tourists. The delegation was one of the seven multi-party delegations India had tasked to visit 33 global capitals to reach out to the international community to emphasise Pakistan's links to terrorism. 'If you are born a hundred times, you will do it a hundred times; I will love my country with all my heart; We did whatever we could for the motherland, the whole world knows the truth now," Tharoor wrote on X in Hindi The group arrived in the US capital on June 3 and over the course of three days held a wide array of meetings on Capitol Hill as well as in Washington, briefing American government officials as well as lawmakers about India's stance on cross-border terrorism. The Indian team met Vice President Vance, Landau, House Foreign Affairs Committee (HFAC) leadership, India Caucus leadership and Senate Foreign Relations Committee leaders. It also held meetings and interactions with a host of US Congressmen, think tanks, policy experts, media as well as members of the Indian-American community. Tharoor described the meeting with Vance at the White House for about 25 minutes on Thursday as 'an excellent meeting,' and said the vice president was 'warm and welcoming and receptive.' 'Vance expressed complete understanding, first of all, outrage of what happened in Pahalgam and support and respect for India's restrained response in Operation Sindoor,' Tharoor told PTI after that meeting. The Indian Embassy said in a statement that during the meeting with Landau, the delegation briefed him on the heinous terrorist attack in Pahalgam, discussed India's subsequent Operation Sindoor, and put forth India's firm resolve to counter cross-border terrorism in all its forms. On the last day of the delegation's scheduled meetings, the delegation paid homage to Mahatma Gandhi at his statue opposite the Indian Embassy here. 'It is striking how many world capitals are adorned with statues or busts of the Mahatma, the 20th century's greatest apostle of peace, nonviolence, and human freedom,' Tharoor posted on X afterwards. The team, which had arrived from India in New York on May 24, had travelled to Guyana, Panama, Colombia and Brazil before arriving in Washington for the last leg of the tour. The other members of the delegation were Sarfaraz Ahmad (JMM), Ganti Harish Madhur Balayogi (TDP), Shashank Mani Tripathi (BJP), Bhubaneswar Kalita (BJP), Milind Deora (Shiv Sena), Tejasvi Surya (BJP) and India's former Ambassador to the US Taranjit Sandhu. Tensions between India and Pakistan escalated after the Pahalgam terror attack, with India carrying out precision strikes on terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir on May 7. If you are born a hundred times, you will do it a hundred times; I will love my country with all my heart. The on-ground hostilities from Indian and Pakistan sides that lasted for four days ended with an understanding of stopping the military actions following talks between the directors general of military operations of both sides on May 10.
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
General Electric Eager to Power India's 5th Gen Fighter Jet
Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Popular in Epaper US' General Electric (GE) will vie for the contract to make engines for the Indian Air Force 's fifth-generation stealth fighter or advanced medium combat aircraft , chairman and chief executive Larry Culp told ET in an said the aerospace major considers India a strategically important market for both the civil and defence aerospace businesses.'We are very interested,' he said. 'If you look at what we're doing with the Tejas with our 404 engines, we are right in the middle of probably what matters most in that regard. The US and India enjoy a very strong relationship. So we are here, we want to be supportive and are engaged so we possibly can be.'Last month, India announced a long-awaited plan to fast-track the development of an indigenous fifth-generation stealth fighter. The announcement came days after Operation Sindoor against of the most critical components—a high-thrust engine—will likely be developed through a joint venture with a foreign manufacturer. GE will face competition on this from rivals such as Safran and is also stepping up the delivery of jet engines to plane maker Hindustan Aeronautics (HAL) for the Tejas Mark-1A fighter, which has been much delayed. In March, GE delivered the first of 99 F-404 engines, around two years behind schedule.'That is our intent and we've communicated that to everyone,' Culp said. 'We are working with the suppliers to ramp their capability. We're making good progress. I just look at April and May of this year compared to where we were in the first quarter—we've seen a double-digit increase in the number of receipts.'IAF chief Air Chief Marshal AP Singh recently voiced concerns about delays in the procurement of critical military military programmes and commercial airline sales are increasingly being delayed due to the inability of manufacturers to ramp up production. Culp said that though multiple actions are being taken to lessen the impact, it will be a while before the problem is solved.'We are making a tremendous amount of progress not only in GE but across the industry,' he said. 'But when you look at the demand expectations that only increase every year, we're going to be talking about supply chain for a while. That's just the nature of the challenge where we are in a super cycle.'GE will also look to set up a maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) facility for civilian aircraft engines in India once the volume increases. 'I think that's more a matter of when, as opposed to if,' he said. 'We want to make sure we have the underlying volume in the marketplace that would support those investments.'GE has more than 1,400 engines operating in India, powering both narrow and wide body aircraft and an order book for around 2,500 more. 'The number is sufficient to say that India is a priority country for us,' Culp you look at what we're doing with the Tejas with 404 engines, we are right in the middle of probably what matters most... The US and India enjoy a very strong relationship. So we are here, we want to be supportive.
Time of India
2 hours ago
- Time of India
16 arrested in Assam over alleged illegal cattle slaughter during Eid
Guwahati: A total of 16 people were arrested for "illegally" slaughtering cattle during Eid a day ago, said chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Sunday. He said cattle parts were recovered from multiple locations across Assam, including near Cotton University in Guwahati Five illegal slaughter sites were found in two districts of Barak Valley — Gumrah, Silchar, and Lakhipur in Cachar district, and Badarpur and Banga in Karimganj district. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now The CM, in a post on his X handle, wrote: "While our Constitution guarantees the right to religious freedom, it equally upholds the rule of law and public order. This Eid-ul-Zuha, disturbing incidents of illegal cattle slaughter and recovery of cattle parts were reported from multiple locations across Assam." Sarma said nine arrests were made in Cachar and seven in Sribhumi district, with additional reports of cattle parts being found in Dhubri, Hojai, and Sribhumi, as well as near Cotton University in Guwahati. The CM said the state govt is committed to "preserving communal harmony, but not at the cost of lawlessness or cruelty". "Please be clear that strict action will be taken against all violators — irrespective of faith or background," he added Meanwhile, people from the Hindu community blocked roads in Hojai on Sunday, alleging that pieces of meat were deliberately thrown by miscreants in certain areas on Saturday night, a police officer said. While beef consumption is not illegal in the state, the Assam Cattle Preservation Act, 2021, prohibits cattle slaughter and beef sales in majority-Hindu, Jain, or Sikh localities, as well as within a five-km radius of a temple or satra (Vaishnavite monastery). On Sunday, a large number of people from the Hindu and Muslim communities came out in Hojai to hold protests separately. They blocked roads and clashed with the police, the officer said. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now "While the Hindus blocked roads in the Barpukhuri area, where suspected cattle meat pieces were found at three places on Saturday, Muslims also came out and blocked a road at Bhuyanpatty as a countermeasure," he said. A section of the mob at Bhuyanpatty clashed with the police, prompting officers to use "mild lathi-charge" to disperse the protesters. However, the situation was brought under control with additional security forces deployed in the area. In Guwahati, police said some pieces of meat wrapped in a polythene packet were found near the Cotton University. The sample has been sent for forensic testing. "No comment can be made until reports are available," the police said.
