Kashmir Valley witnessed 600 militant attacks in five years

There have been nearly 600 militant attacks across the Valley in the last five years with north Kashmir’s Sopore town topping the list with 112 attacks.

Official records reveal that 595 militant attacks have taken place in different districts of the Valley from January 2010 to August 2015 with Sopore town and Srinagar witnessing 112 and 89 militant attacks respectively. In the first eight months of this year Kashmir has witnessed 82 militant attacks.

According to the official report, police has carried out 39 “pro-action operations” in 2015 in which 17 militants have been killed. Most gunfights have been reported in the forest areas close to the Line of Control (LoC).

The year 2013 witnessed a decrease in militancy-related violence, however, 2014 and 2015 showed a significant increase. The security agencies expect the level of violence to remain high in the coming months due to reports of more local youth joining militancy.

The data point that there has been a spurt in violence this year compared to the last two years. In the first eight months of this year, 27 civilians have been killed compared to 29 civilian deaths in 2014.