Pahalgam attack: PM Modi to cut short his Saudi visit, return home

New Delhi, April 22 (IANS) Prime Minister Narendra Modi will cut short his visit to Saudi Arabia and return to the country in the wake of the terrorist attack in Kashmir’s Pahalgam, sources said on Tuesday.

Sources said that the Prime Minister also skipped the official dinner hosted by Saudi Arabia and has decided to cut short his visit.

They said that PM Modi will leave for India tonight, while he was originally scheduled to return on Wednesday night.

The Prime Minister has also called for an urgent meeting of the government’s topmost decision-making body - the Cabinet Committee on Security, over the Pahalgam crisis in Kashmir.

Earlier, PM Modi strongly condemned the terror attack in picturesque Pahalgam hill station, vowing that those responsible for the “heinous act” will be brought to justice.

“I strongly condemn the terror attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir. Condolences to those who have lost their loved ones. I pray that the injured recover at the earliest. All possible assistance is being provided to those affected,” PM Modi posted on X.

In a stern warning to the perpetrators, he added, “Those behind this heinous act will be brought to justice... they will not be spared! Their evil agenda will never succeed. Our resolve to fight terrorism is unshakable and it will only grow stronger.”

Shortly after the incident, PM Modi held a telephonic conversation with Union Home Minister Amit Shah, directing him to ensure all necessary measures are taken. Following this, Shah announced he would travel to Srinagar to personally assess the situation and chair a high-level security review meeting.

“Anguished by the terror attack on tourists in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir. My thoughts are with the family members of the deceased. Those involved in this dastardly act of terror will not be spared, and we will come down heavily on the perpetrators with the harshest consequences,” the Home Minister posted on X.

Notably, several tourists were reportedly killed and many others, including tourists & locals, were injured in a terror attack in Pahalgam hill station in Jammu and Kashmir's Anantnag district on Tuesday, leading to the security forces launching a massive operation to hunt down the perpetrators.

As per reports, two to three terrorists wearing army fatigues came and fired at horse-riding tourists in the Baisran area around 2.30 p.m. Baisran is a small meadow 3 to 4 km from the Pahalgam market, and tourists take horses to reach the place as there is no motorable road to it.

--IANS

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