1998 Prankote massacre

1998 killings of Hindus in Jammu and Kashmir July 2016 April 2026 Prankote Massacre Prankote, Jammu and Kashmir, India Hindus 17 April 1998 Mass murder, arson, attempted forcible conversion 29 Lashkar-e-ToibaHizbul Mujahideen The 1998 Prankote massacre was the killing and beheading of 29 Hindus in the villages of Prankote and Dakikote by Islamist militants in the Udhampur district (now in Reasi district) of the erstwhile Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir on 17 April 1998.Burns John F. Gunmen Kill 25 Hindus in Kashmir Attacks https://www.nytimes.com/1998/06/20/world/gunmen-kill-25-hindus-in-kashmir-attacks.html 20 June 1998 17 April 2023 The New York Times26 Hindu villagers butchered in Jammu https://www.rediff.com/news/1998/apr/20jammu.htm Rediff 2022-03-18 The victims included 13 women and children. The houses of those killed were later set to fire.Ahmed Mukhtar 'The village resembled a ghost area with beheaded bodies lying scattered' https://www.rediff.com/news/1998/apr/20jammu.htm 20 April 1998 Rediff 17 April 2023 Survivors claimed that the killers had told the villagers to convert to Islam and massacred the villagers after they refused. More than 1,000 villagers fled their homes in the area after the massacre.Baweja Harinder Increasing number of foreign mercenaries adds dangerous dimension to insurgency in J&K https://www.indiatoday.in/magazine/states/story/19980504-increasing-number-of-foreign-mercenaries-adds-dangerous-dimension-to-insurgency-in-j-k-826312-1998-05-03 India Today 3 May 1998 17 April 2023 It also provoked outrage across India. The massacre was one of a series of massacres of Hindu villagers by Islamist militants in 1998.Swami Praveen Massacres and mischief https://frontline.thehindu.com/other/article30158979.ece 23 May 1998 Frontline 17 April 2023 Attack The village lay on one of the routes used by terrorists infiltrating from neighbouring Pakistan. Weeks before the massacre, local police alerted that foreign infiltrators were present in the area. On the night of 17 April 1998, militants forced entry into four Hindu houses of the village and massacred the inhabitants, and set the houses on fire. According to a survivor, the killers ordered them to convert to Islam and to prove their conversion by consuming beef — which is prohibited in Hinduism. Upon refusing to do so, their throats were slit. One woman who managed to escape later succumbed to her burn injuries, and her body was found in a gorge. It took 10 hours for news of the attack to reach the authorities. Security forces did not arrive until the following day.20 June – 3 July 1998 A new front in the proxy war http://www.hinduonnet.com/fline/fl1513/15130180.htm usurped Frontline 15 13 https://web.archive.org/web/20020404203711/http://www.hinduonnet.com/fline/fl1513/15130180.htm 4 April 2002 27 May 2018 The J&K police learned of the incident close to 48 hours after it had happened. The police party that was heading to the site by trekking through the difficult terrain of the area was airlifted to the spot in the Chief Minister’s helicopter. One police official noted that the village "resembled a ghost area, with beheaded bodies lying scattered." Aftermath The incident triggered an exodus of villagers from the area, with more than 1,000 fleeing to Reasi, Pouni Thanpal, Chasana and other towns of the district, where they were accommodated in camps.http://www.rediff.com/news/1998/aug/06kash.htm Jammu averages 50 killings a month rediff.com 2018-05-27 Congress President Sonia Gandhi visited the camps and was told by the villagers that they were unwilling to return to their homes unless adequate security could be provided. Many of them, including survivors of the massacre, continue to live in these camps in abject conditions and allege neglect by the government.Gupta Satya Dev Prankote massacre survivors neglected 17 April 2021 https://www.dailyexcelsior.com/prankote-massacre-survivors-neglected/ 17 April 2023 Daily ExcelsiorManhotra Dinesh For Prankote massacre victims, things remain unchanged for 23 years https://www.ibtimes.co.in/prankote-massacre-victims-things-remain-unchanged-23-years-details-835359 17 April 2021 IB Times 17 April 2023 The massacre caused a wave of outrage across India. Top government officials in India vowed to intensify the fight against militants and also warned of possible retaliation against Pakistan, which India alleges trains and arms the militants. Then-Chief Minister of the state, Farooq Abdullah called the incident "shocking," adding that he had "seen tragedies earlier, but this was bloodcurdling. No bullets were fired, the villagers were butchered."http://www.jammu-kashmir.com/archives/archives1998/98april21a.html Kashmir Terrorists Behead 26 Hindus in Prankote jammu-kashmir.com 2018-05-27 LK Advani, Home Minister of India at the time, said that "the aim [of the massacre] was to terrorise people so that they do not return." In July 2003, one of the accused, Manzoor Ahmed, was convicted of the crime and sentenced to life imprisonment by a court.Prankote massacre: police officer hails court verdict https://www.tribuneindia.com/2003/20030801/j&k.htm The Tribune 31 July 2003 17 April 2023 In April 2008, the mastermind of this attack, Abdul Haque alias Jahangir, an Islamic terrorist belonging to Hizbul Mujahideen, was killed in an encounter with Indian security forces.Manhotra Dinesh https://www.tribuneindia.com/2008/20080424/main2.htm Top Hizb militant dies in encounter The Tribune 2018-05-27 See also List of terrorist incidents in Jammu and Kashmir 1998 Wandhama massacre 1998 Chapnari massacre 1998 Chamba massacre References 30em Jammu and Kashmir Category:Terrorist incidents in India in 1998 Category:Massacres in 1998 Category:1998 murders in India Category:Udhampur district Category:Reasi district Category:Persecution of Hindus by Muslims Category:1990s in Jammu and Kashmir Category:Massacres in Jammu and Kashmir Category:Massacres of Hindus in Kashmir Category:April 1998 crimes Category:April 1998 in India Category:Islamic terrorist incidents in 1998 Category:Attacks on buildings and structures in Jammu and Kashmir Category:Attacks on buildings and structures in 1998 Category:Terrorist incidents in Jammu and Kashmir Category:People executed for refusing to convert to Islam Category:Arson in Jammu and Kashmir Category:Arson in 1998 Category:1990s fires in Asia