In the region of Indian-administered Kashmir, military personnel have destroyed the homes of two individuals suspected of being behind the deadliest attack on civilians in nearly two decades.
According to police reports, the attackers are linked to The Resistance Front (TRF), a faction associated with the Pakistan-based group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), a claim that Pakistan has denied.
In the aftermath of the attack that claimed 26 lives in Pahalgam on Tuesday, Indian security forces have launched a significant manhunt for those responsible.
Authorities have issued wanted posters featuring sketches of three suspects: Adil Hussain Thokar, a suspected Kashmiri rebel, along with two Pakistani nationals named Ali Bhai and Hashim Musa. They are also searching for another suspected rebel, Ashif Sheikh.
Following the attack, the families of the two suspected militants were taken into custody for questioning, as confirmed by a police officer and the relatives of the suspects.
Yasmeena, the sister of Sheikh, described how soldiers cordoned off their home in the southern Tral area of Kashmir late Thursday night.
“One soldier climbed over the mud wall surrounding our house,” Yasmeena, who chose to provide only her first name, recounted. “Then, a loud and terrifying explosion caused the house to collapse. Everything inside was destroyed,” she said, emphasizing that no one was home at the time.
A police officer stated that soldiers also demolished Thokar’s family home in the neighboring Bijbehara area in a similar fashion early Friday morning.
Both suspects have reportedly been active for three to four years and are part of TRF, which is considered an offshoot of LeT,” the officer told AFP news agency on the condition of anonymity, as he was not authorized to speak to the media.
“They are wanted militants involved in previous attacks against security forces as well,” the officer added.
Additionally, police have announced a reward of two million rupees ($23,500) for information leading to the arrest of each suspect.