Pilgrims advised to leave Kashmir Valley over security threats

Amarnath pilgrims have been advised to curtail their stay in Kashmir Valley “due to [the] prevailing security situation” and “take measures to return immediately.” The government of Jammu and Kashmir issued the order on Friday, citing “the latest intelligence inputs of terror threats, with specific targeting of the Amarnath Yatra.”

Given the “prevailing security situation in the Kashmir Valley, in the interest of safety and security of the tourists,” they were advised to take measures to “return as soon as possible.”

Late July, India hailed a Hindu pilgrimage to a holy cave high in the snow-capped mountains of Kashmir as an example of communal harmony. India and arch-rival Pakistan have fought two wars over Kashmir, and came close to a third in February after a suicide-bomb attack by Pakistan-based militants on Indian paramilitary police near the pilgrimage route.

The security threat has been issued just hours after the Indian Army said that terrorists from Pakistan “are plotting to carry out an attack on the ongoing Amarnath Yatra.”