In Indian-Controlled Kashmir, Unprecedented Attack Puts Focus on ‘Homegrown’ Militants by Niha Masih and Joanna Slater – Washington Post
GUNDIBAGH, India - Just a few miles separate the place where Adil Ahmad Dar grew up from the place where he ended his life in an act of wanton violence.
When Dar drove an SUV packed with explosives into a convoy of Indian security personnel on Thursday, he carried out the single deadliest attack in decades in a region torn by strife.
The bombing may mark a turning point in Indian-controlled Kashmir, where an insurgency against Indian rule has waxed and waned since 1989. The militancy is far smaller than it was at its peak, but it is increasingly drawing local recruits.
The escalation of violence comes as tactics by India that critics decry as heavy-handed have alienated a new generation of Kashmiri youths and social media has proved a potent recruitment tool for militant groups, some of which are based in Pakistan.
The attack, which killed 40 paramilitary officers, has escalated the potential for conflict between nuclear-armed India and Pakistan.
In India, with national elections only months away, there is intense pressure on Prime Minister Narendra Modi to respond. The public mood is a mix of sorrow and anger that has curdled into something uglier in some places. Kashmiris living in other parts of India reportedly were threatened in the wake of the attack…