At least six migrant workers and a doctor were shot dead on Sunday night in India’s Kashmir region when militants opened fire near a tunnel construction site, according to local officials. The attack occurred just days after a new government was formed in the territory, marking the second assault on non-local workers since the local government was sworn in last week.
The Resistance Front (TRF), an anti-India Kashmiri separatist group, claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement circulated on social media.
This surge in violence comes after an opposition alliance recently took power in the region following its victory in the first elections held in a decade. These polls were also the first since Jammu and Kashmir’s special status was revoked in 2019, a move that resulted in the region being split into two federally administered territories—Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh.
The recent political developments, including the newly-formed local government, have intensified the fragile situation in the disputed region. Attacks on non-local workers, in particular, have heightened fears of escalating tensions.
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