Since the year 2000, Jammu and Kashmir has witnessed numerous terror attacks that targeted innocent civilians. These attacks have not only taken hundreds of lives but also left behind deep wounds that continue to affect families and communities across the region. While many of these attacks were claimed by Pakistan-based terror groups, Let’s look back at some of the most heart-wrenching attacks on civilians in Kashmir since 2000.
On 21 March 2000, terrorists brutally killed 36 members of the Sikh community in Chattisinghpora, Anantnag. Just months later, in August, another attack shocked the nation when 24 Amarnath pilgrims were killed at Nunwan base camp. In 2001, 13 pilgrims died in a similar attack at the Sheshnag base camp.
On 1 October 2001, a suicide bomber stormed J&K State Legislature in Srinagar, killing 36 people. In 2002, 11 more pilgrims were killed at Chandanwari. That same year in November, a deadly blast at Lower Munda claimed 19 lives, including women and children, on the Jammu-Srinagar highway.
The pain deepened on 23 March 2003, when terrorists massacred 24 Kashmiri Pandits, including women and children, at Nandimarg village in Pulwama. In 2005, a car bomb outside a Pulwama school killed 13 civilians, including children. Then in 2006, nine labourers from Nepal and Bihar were gunned down in Kulgam.
On 10 July 2017, a bus carrying Amarnath pilgrims was attacked in Kulgam. Eight people were killed, and many others injured. This came just after the deadly 2016. it was a clear reminder that even spiritual journeys were not safe from violence.
13 civilians, including two school children and three CRPF personnel, were killed and many others were injured, when a car packed with explosives exploded in a busy market outside a government school in Pulwama.
On 22 April 2025, terrorists this time struck the scenic Aru Valley in Pahalgam. At least 27 tourists lost their lives in the horrifying attack, with more than a dozen injured. The tragedy reminded the nation that terrorism still haunts Kashmir, even as it works towards peace.
On June 12, 2006, terrorists opened fire on a group of non-local workers in Kulgam, killing 9 labourers from Bihar and Nepal. July 10, 2017 saw another brutal strike on pilgrims, leaving 8 dead and several injured. The deadliest strike on security forces occurred on February 14, 2019, when a suicide bomber rammed into a CRPF convoy in Pulwama, killing 40 jawans.