Terrorist activity in Jammu and Kashmir in the first half of 2024

According to partial data compiled by the South Asia Counter Terrorism Portal (SATP), there have been 8 separate incidents of attacks on civilians resulting in 8 civilian deaths and 3 injuries this year (data as of May 26, 2024).

During the corresponding period in 2023, in 10 separate incidents, although a similar number of civilian deaths (8) were recorded, the number of injuries was 19. However, during the remaining period of 2023, that is, more than seven months, only 4 more civilian deaths were recorded residents, bringing the total death toll for the year to 12, the lowest in this category since 2016, when 14 people died.

On May 18, 2024, former Sarpanch and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) worker Ajaz Ahmad Sheikh was shot dead by terrorists in Kherpora village in Shopian district of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K).

On the same day, two tourists identified as Farah Khan and Tabrez Khan from Jaipur, Rajasthan were injured when terrorists opened fire on them at a tourist resort in Yannar area of ​​Pahalgam in Anantnag district.

On April 28, 2024, VDG member Mohd Sharif was killed in a gunfight with cross-border terrorists in a remote village in Udhampur district.

On April 22, 2024, unknown terrorists killed Social Welfare Department (SWD) employee Mohammad Razak while he was leaving a mosque in Shadra Sharif area of ​​Rajouri district.

On April 17, 2024, an unknown terrorist shot dead a non-local trader from Bihar, Raja Shah, in Bijbehara area of ​​Anantnag district.

On April 8, 2024, terrorists fired at and injured Delhi-based taxi driver Dilranjit Singh in Padpawan area of ​​Shopian district.

On March 1, 2024, the Indian Army reported on social media platform X (formerly Twitter) that an unknown terrorist killed a civilian and his son at their residence in Kellar area of ​​Shopian district.

On February 7, terrorists shot dead Amritpal Singh, a non-local laborer from Amritsar in Punjab, at Shalla Kadal locality in Habba Kadal area of ​​Srinagar city (Srinagar District). Another non-local worker, Rohit Mashi, who was also from Amritsar, was injured in the incident and died a day later on February 8.

Thus, there has been a relative spike in attacks on civilians and related deaths and injuries in the first five months (approximately) of the current year after a lull in the previous 10 months of 2023, raising some security concerns under an improved security scenario.

Of the total 12 killed and 35 injured in 2023, the first two months alone recorded eight deaths and 26 injuries, while the remaining 10 months saw only four deaths and nine injured. The total death toll in J&K was 19 (8 civilians, 1 military and 10 terrorists) in the current year as against 35 (8 civilians, 11 military and 15 terrorists, one unidentified) in the corresponding period of 2023.

In fact, a total of 134 deaths were reported in 2023, the lowest annual total since 2012, when 121 deaths were recorded.

Moreover, this year the ratio of Security Forces (SF) to terrorists killed is 1:10 (1 military killed: 10 terrorists killed) in favor of the SF. For the corresponding period in 2023, the ratio was 1:1.36 (11 military personnel killed: 15 terrorists killed).

However, the ratio improved in the second half of 2023, ending up with a ratio for the full year of 1:2.63 (33 military personnel killed: 87 terrorists killed). This, however, was much lower than the 2022 figure of 1:6.43 (30 military personnel killed: 193 terrorists killed).

The total number of terrorism-related incidents this year was 59, compared to 100 in the corresponding period in 2023. For all of 2023, 267 such incidents were reported, compared to 457 in 2022.

Indeed, the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (UMHA) year-end 2023 release dated December 31, 2023 stated that since the abrogation of Article 370 in J&K in August 2019, the security situation has improved significantly.

It is also reported that the number of incidents of organized terrorism and separatism fell from 1,221 in 2018 to zero in 2023, and organized unrest (strikes or general shutdowns) from 52 to zero.

Earlier, on December 11, 2023, Union Home Minister Amit Shah informed the Rajya Sabha (Upper House of Parliament of India) that in total from 2004 to 2014. There have been 7,217 terrorist attacks in Kashmir, but 2,197 attacks have occurred in the last ten years. From 2004 to 2014 2,829 law enforcement officers and civilians were killed, compared with 891 law enforcement officers and civilians killed in the past ten years.

Speaking about the measures taken to combat terrorism, he added that 32 cases of terrorist financing were registered, when not a single case was recorded before 2014. So far, 229 arrests have been made and assets worth INR 1.5 billion have been confiscated in terrorism financing cases.

One of the main reasons for the improvement in the security situation in the Union Territory is the establishment of peace on the border, which has led to a reduction in the infiltration of terrorists from abroad.

According to UMHA data, 141 cross-border infiltration incidents were reported in J&K in 2019, 51 such infiltration incidents were reported in 2020, 34 in 2021, 14 in 2022 and zero in 2023 (till June 30).

In fact, Lieutenant General Upendra Dwivedi, Commander-in-Chief Northern Command said on January 14, 2024, that 2023 has been declared as the “year of zero infiltration” as no terrorist was able to cross the Line of Control.