Wednesday, April 23

At least 26 tourists are dead after being attacked by militants in the Indian region of Kashmir, an area that has experienced lots of conflict in the past.

The incident occurred in the Baisaran Valley, near the town of Pahalgam. This area has been dubbed "mini Switzerland" due to its tall, snowy mountains and wide valleys of green grass and thick forest. During the attack, a group of tourists had been strolling through the valley when several militants opened fire on them from a concealed hiding place, leaving the tourists defenseless.

At least 26 people were killed, and many others were injured. Most of the victims were Indian, although authorities have stated that two of them were foreign tourists.

The militants have been confirmed to be Pakistani terrorists, and their images are now displayed across the region after survivors described their faces.

Countries from all over the world have condemned the attack, including Ukraine, Afghanistan, China, and Bangladesh. The attack has also been met with fury from within India, with actors, politicians, and other civilians taking to social media and protesting on the streets to denounce the shooting.

Unfortunately, Kashmir has a long history of violence, but the situation has considerably improved from before. Kashmir is part of a former Indian state known as Jammu and Kashmir, which faced major conflicts ever since India's independence. During the Partition of India in 1947, Pakistan and India fought over western Kashmir, and the region was divided. Decades later, Pakistan now controls what is known as Pakistan Occupied Kashmir, or POK. China also took part in this conflict, taking an area known as Aksai Chin in the 1962 Indo-Chinese War, but they have not taken much action since then.

Pakistani forces have conducted terrorist attacks and staged uprisings in India's side of Kashmir for years, as they hope to gain more territory. However, parts of Kashmir wanted to join Pakistan in the past, and other parts of Kashmir wanted to become an independent state, instead. This led to various conflicts across the region, killing hundreds of people.

In 2019, the Indian government revoked what was known as Article 370, which gave Jammu and Kashmir a special status as a state. The state was given autonomous powers, allowing it to have its own constitution, flag, and laws. Once this article was revoked, Jammu and Kashmir lost its special status, and the Indian government proceeded to split the region into two union territories. This significantly reduced the conflict in the area, and Kashmir has not experienced a shutdown due to a conflict since 2019.

This terror attack is sure to put the rest of Kashmir -- and other states bordering Pakistan -- on high alert, and India will likely take this incident extremely seriously to ensure that Pakistani terrorists are not able to take action like this again.

Fact of the Day (Today): The longest-named dinosaur is the Micropachycephalosaurus.

Quote of the Day (Gracious Quotes): One must pass through the circumference of time before arriving at the center of opportunity. (Baltasar Gracián)

Word of the Day (Merriam-Webster): Liaison (noun, lee-AY-zahn) - Liaison refers to a person who helps organizations or groups work together and provide information to each other, or to a relationship that allows such interactions.

In a Sentence: The new position involves acting as a liaison between the police department and city schools.