Pahalgam Terror Attack: A Wake-Up Call to Humanity

April 22, 2025, Baisaran in Pahalgam, Jammu & Kashmir, witnessed terrorists unleashing an unimaginable and unforgettable horror on innocent tourists from many different states in India and abroad. A place known for its aesthetic beauty and tranquility was immediately turned into a place of bloodshed and tragedy. Twenty-seven innocent people who visited the tourist destination were ruthlessly killed, while many were seriously injured in this gruesome, cowardly terrorist attack. What made the incident even more provoking was the approach and methods adopted by the terrorist. First-hand reports reveal that the attacker hand-picked his victims solely based on their Hindu faith.

Eyewitnesses shared the harrowing details like: the terrorist demanded to show the victims’ identification cards, asked for their names, and, in cases of doubt, forced individuals to undress to look for religious marking of circumcision. Some were even asked to recite the Kalma, an Islamic declaration of faith — all in a gruesome attempt to filter out non-Muslims.

Those who failed these brutal “tests” were shot point-blank in front of their wives, daughters, children, and parents — acts of sheer cowardice and barbarity that dares the very essence of humanity.

It is a tragic reflection on our times. As someone who has seen and observed the growing pattern of such violence, I cannot help but ask, “Terrorism has no religion, but how come most terrorists have only one religion?”

The Resistance Front (TRF), an offshoot of the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba, a globally designated terrorist organization, accepted the responsibility. As investigations progressed, it became very clear that most of the terrorists involved were trained in Pakistan, with at least two identified as Pakistani nationals.

The sequence of events and evidence collected undeniably highlights the following truths:

• Pakistan has evolved into a terror state, providing safe havens for extremists.

• Training camps of terrorists continue to operate freely.

• Trained terrorists continue to infiltrate India.

• No surprise, when the world’s most-wanted terrorist, Osama Bin Laden, found safe haven in Abbottabad, Pakistan, until his death at the hands of U.S. forces.

• Local support for such activities cannot be ignored — such operations are not possible without it.

Lessons from the Pahalgam Attack

The pain of this tragic incident must drive change. We must draw urgent lessons:

• All communities must stand united against terrorism in every form, in every place.

• Perpetrators must be isolated and singled out for their crimes, without hiding behind false shields of community identity.

• The Muslim community must introspect deeply, confront radicalization, and actively weed out anti-social, inhumane, anti-national elements that tarnish their faith and endanger all.

• Every community must foster vigilance and solidarity, and promptly report suspicious activities to the authorities to prevent such horrific incidents from repeating.

The bloodshed in Pahalgam is not just an attack of bloodshed on individuals who visited a tourist destination — it is an atrocious attack on the soul of humanity. Everyone’s responsibility, regardless of faith and nationality, is to ensure that such evil finds no place in society.

If we truly wish to honor those who lost their lives in Pahalgam, we must have no fear in calling out the terror roots, no matter how uncomfortable it may make us. Silence, appeasement, and denial can only fuel the fire in the future. True peace will come not through hashtags or hollow condemnations, but through united, relentless action against every ideology, every network, and every state that nurtures and exports death. Pahalgam must not become just another headline — it must become a turning point.