SRINAGAR BOMBING MERITS PUBLIC USG RESPONSE

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 NEW DELHI 005592

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR DS/DSS/ITA

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/19/2015
TAGS: PTER PREL PGOV IN PK
SUBJECT: SRINAGAR BOMBING MERITS PUBLIC USG RESPONSE


Classified By: Charge Robert O. Blake, Jr. for Reasons 1.4 (B, D)


1. (U) This is an action request. Please see para 7.


2. (C) Summary: A powerful car bomb possibly detonated by a
suicide bomber killed at least 3 security personnel and two
unidentified persons (probably including the terrorist)
outside of a school today in Srinagar. Police sources tell
us that terrorists' capability in Kashmir remains strong,
infiltration efforts are surging, and the terrorists have
shifted their targeting to "quality, not quantity." The GOI
is playing down the significance of the rise in infiltration
to avoid disrupting the Indo-Pak peace process. Post
recommends that Department condemn the bombings, especially
as it occurred during PM Manmohan Singh's stay in Washington.
End Summary.

Blast Kills 5, Injures 17
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3. (SBU) An explosives-laden Maruti car exploded near the
high-security Church Lane Road (where several state ministers
live) in Srinagar on July 20 at approximately 9 a.m. local
time. The explosion took place near the residence of the
Chief Justice of J&K, and outside the Burnhall School, a
Christian missionary school whose student population is
mostly Muslim. The car bomb exploded next to a passing Army
truck, killing at least three soldiers and two others, one of
whom may be the suicide bomber.


4. (C) The Director General of Kashmir Police confirmed the
death toll, and said an additional 11 people were injured,
but there were no injuries at the school. Later media
reports raised the number of wounded to 17. Based on the
strength of the blast, police assume that the explosive was
RDX. The Inspector General of Police informed us that the
car rammed the Army truck before exploding, suggesting that
one of the unidentified dead persons was a suicide bomber.
There had been no claim of responsibility as of 10 a.m. local
time.


5. (C) The DG also told us that infiltration across the LOC
has continued "unabated," confirming a July 19 Army press
statement disclosing a surge in infiltration attempts in the
past ten days. While the Army stated that it is prepared to
thwart these attempts, terrorist capability in the valley
remains strong, the DG said, telling us that one terrorist
shot by security forces on July 18 was carrying 180 sticks of
dynamite wrapped in Pakistani newspapers. The DG told us
that terrorists have been selecting high-profile targets
including state ministers in a strategy of "quality, not
quantity."

Comment: Kashmiris Sick of Terrorism
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6. (C) The rise in terrorist infiltration across the LOC has
been widely noted and leads to a growing perception here that
Pakistan is reneging on its commitment to check cross-border
terrorism. The Army, however, has played down the
significance of the surge, attributing it to the timing of
snow melt in the mountain passes, and has claimed that the
incidents will not disrupt the ongoing peace process. Army
Chief of Staff JJ Singh asserted in a July 19 briefing that
"it would not be fair" to blame the Pakistan Army for the
current round of infiltration, and the GOI, at least for now,
is going out of its way to avoid pointing fingers at
Pakistan, reflecting concern this could undermine political
support for the peace process. The BJP has been less
restrained, responding to the July 20 attack by accusing the
UPA of being "soft towards terrorism," and promising to
question the Congress-led government's record on terrorism in
the upcoming Parliament session. In Srinagar, the bombed
street had reopened by noon local time, and city life is back
to normal. Srinagar interlocutors have told us that the
terrorists will claim responsibility this time because they
hit their target (soldiers),unlike previous unclaimed blasts
that have killed only civilians. The Kashmiri people are
sick of terrorism and want to return to a normal life.

Action Request
--------------


7. (C) The Prime Minister's speeches in Washington
highlighted the threat that India continues to face from
terrorists and appealed for broader resistance to all
manifestations of terrorism. Post recommends that Department
respond to this latest terrorist act, which put
schoolchildren at risk, with a strong public condemnation.
BLAKE