1998 Chapnari massacre
1998 massacre in India
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The 1998 Chapnari massacre was a massacre of 26 Hindus in the Chapnari village, Doda district of Jammu & Kashmir, India on 19 June 1998, by terrorists belonging to the Islamic terrorist groups, Lashkar-e-Taiba and Hizbul Mujahideen.[1][2][3]
| Chapnari Massacre | |
|---|---|
| Location | Chapnari, Doda District, Jammu and Kashmir, India |
| Date | 19 June 1998 |
| Target | Hindus |
Attack type | Mass murder |
| Deaths | 26 |
| Perpetrators | Lashkar-e-Taiba Hizbul Mujahideen[1] |
| Motive | Islamic terrorism |
Background
In 1990, 500,000 to 600,000 Kashmiri Hindus left Kashmir after being targeted by Islamist militants.[4]
The attack
Aftermath
Chief minister Farooq Abdullah strongly condemned the attack and described it as "yet another barbaric act of Pakistan-sponsored militants in Jammu and Kashmir". India's Home Minister, Lal Krishna Advani, who had recently assumed overall control of Indian policy in the state, described the killing of the wedding guests as "a clear attempt at ethnic cleansing" and said that responsibility for the attack, and the other massacres of Hindus, rested with Pakistan.[2]
In September 1998, Abid Hussain of Lashkar-e-Taiba, who was the main suspect in the massacre, was killed in an encounter by Indian security forces.[1] Another suspect, Attullah of Hizbul Mujahideen, was arrested in June 2004.[7]