Twenty-one killed, 30 injured as Hindu pilgrims come under attack

SRINAGAR, India - Unarmed Hindu pilgrims and Muslim porters came under rifle fire Tuesday on their way to a religious shrine in disputed Kashmir, and at least 21 people were killed, police said.

No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack at Pahalgam, 55 miles south of Srinagar, the capital of Kashmir. But police said they suspected Islamic guerrillas fighting for Kashmir's independence.

In addition to the dead, 30 people were injured, police said.

Security forces and police fired back at the gunmen, who fled under cover of darkness, said police and army officials reached by telephone. Two militants and a policeman were among those killed, Kulbushan Jandiyal, director of information of the state government told The Associated Press.

The pilgrims had been walking to Amarnath Cave, a religious site for Hindus in the mountains that takes two days to reach. The government provides extensive security for pilgrims because of threats from separatists, who have been fighting security forces for 11 years.

Army soldiers and paramilitary soldiers fanned out across the mountains to search for the assailants.

Some 20,000 pilgrims are camping in tents and hotels in Pahalgam, where they begin a 30-mile trek into the mountains.

Many of those killed were porters and men hired to ferry pilgrims on their horses. Most of those hired are Muslim.

Two-thirds of Kashmir is controlled by India and the rest by Pakistan. More than a dozen guerrilla groups have been fighting security forces to make Kashmir independent.