Amarnath Yatra attack: 7 pilgrims killed, 3 cops hurt in Anantnag; Officials suspect LeT, Hizbul hand

7 Amarnath Yatra Pilgrims Killed In Terror Attack In Jammu And Kashmir's Anantnag.

PM Narendra Modi condemned the terror attack on Amarnath Yatra pilgrims, tweeting: 'India will never get bogged down by such cowardly attacks and the evil designs of hate.'

19 pilgrims injured as terrorists opened fire on their bus.

Bus was not part of main Amarnath yatra convoy

Terrorists also fired at a police party in Anantnag

Seven Amarnath pilgrims were killed while twelve including three policemen were injured after militants attacked a yatri bus and a police party in Anantnag along the Jammu-Srinagar Highway in south Kashmir on Monday, media reports said. One of those injured is in a critical state.

IGP Munir Khan confirmed the toll and said 12 others including security men were injured in the attack. Internet services in Kashmir have been blocked after the attack.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Minister of Home Affairs Rajnath Singh are taking stock of the situation. Condemning the attack, Modi tweeted, "Pained beyond words on the dastardly attack on peaceful Amarnath Yatris in Jammu and Kashmir" but "India will never get bogged down by such cowardly attacks and the evil designs of hate".

Defence minister Arun Jaitley termed the terrorist attack on Amarnath Yatra as "the most reprehensible act", PTI said.

The Amaranath yatri bus was from Gujarat, government sources revealed. The Jammu-Srinagar Highway has been closed after the attack.

According to police officials, the militants attacked an armoured car of the police at 8.20 pm on Monday, PTI reported. When the police fired back, the militants fled, firing indiscriminately, the official added. "In the firing by militants, seven people, five of them women, were killed, and another seven injured," the official confirmed. The injured have been taken to the Army Base Hospital in Srinagar.

The bus had come from Sonamarg. The pilgrims were on their way back after visiting the Amarnath shrine.

"Some gunshots were heard on Jammu-Srinagar Highway near Batengoo," a police source told IANS.

Reports from the area said the firing took place near Khanabal chowk (which is nearly a kilometre away from Batengoo) and the firing was still on. The area has been cordoned off and a manhunt has been launched to nab the terrorists who escaped after the attack.

According to Reports the police were escorting the pilgrims when the militants opened fire. However, both India Today and IANS said that the bus was travelling without any escort. The police also claimed that the bus driver had violated rules for the pilgrimage, which states that no yatra vehicle should be on a highway after 7 pm.