Seven civilians dead in a week as Kashmir in spate of targeted killings

A sudden flare-up in the targeted killing of civilians has sparked fresh concerns of instability in India’s already restive in Jammu and Kashmir. Seven civilians were shot dead, most at point-blank range, in just the last six days.

On Thursday, two government school teachers were shot dead inside the school premises. Earlier this week - on Tuesday - three more civilians were shot. A further two civilians were killed last week.

Armed assailants stormed into the Government Boys Higher Secondary School in Srinagar on Thursday. They asked for the identity cards of the teachers before opening fire on them, an eyewitness said.

Dilbag Singh, Director General of Police in Jammu and Kashmir, said these killings were an attempt to defame local Muslims. “Killing innocent civilians, including teachers, is a move to attack and damage the age-old tradition of communal harmony and brotherhood in Kashmir,” Mr Singh said, during a visit to the school on Thursday. “The police have got some clues and leads about the killers in the previous cases. Police will nab the killers very soon.”

In the shootings on Tuesday, three people were killed in the span of just a few hours, also in Srinagar. The targets were identified as a taxi driver, identified as a taxi driver, a street food vendor and well-known chemist Makhan Lal Bindroo. Mr Bindroo was a Kashmiri Hindu.