Srinagar, May 09: Dozens of homes were damaged on Thursday night in north Kashmir’s Uri and Poonch sector as intense shelling from across the Line of Control (LoC) struck civilian areas.
Salamabad village, located close to the LoC, was among the worst hit. Fires raged through the night, and the air remained thick with smoke well into the morning.
Locals said Pakistani forces deliberately targeted multiple villages, including Silikot, Kamalkote, Boniyar, Gingle, and Mohura.
Officials confirmed widespread damage across these areas, with several residential structures either flattened or badly damaged. Emergency teams struggled to reach the worst-affected locations due to ongoing volatility along the border.
In Salamabad, two homes were completely destroyed. At least four civilians including a 13-year-old girl and a 4-year-old boy were injured in separate incidents.
Residents, many of whom had taken shelter in nearby fields, returned at daybreak to salvage belongings. A collapsed wall, charred kitchen utensils, and a blackened wooden beam were all that remained of one of the houses.
Fatima Khanum, a local resident told Rising Kashmir that four people lived here. My children were injured around 2 a.m. when a shell hit the house directly, she said.
Villagers said they are living under consistent fear. Where are we supposed to go? they questioned.
In one of the night’s most tragic incidents, a 45-year-old woman, identified as Shazia Begum, was among the casualties while trying to flee shelling in her home village of Razarwani.
She was travelling with relatives in a Scorpio SUV when a shell tore through the vehicle’s roof, striking her on the head.
Despite efforts to rush her to a hospital in Baramulla, she died on the way. Two of her family members, also in the vehicle, suffered serious injuries and remain under medical care.
Firdousa Nabi, her close relative, said that she was trying to get away from the shelling. They had barely travelled three kilometres when the shell hit. It went straight through the roof.”
In Poonch district, anger and grief have gripped the border after heavy and unprovoked shelling by Pakistani forces along the LoC killed a civilian, injured four others, and left behind a trail of devastation that has displaced thousands.
The deceased, Abrar Malik, son of Hamid Sharif from Lohi Bela, died on the spot when shells landed near his home.
“My son was not a soldier. He was just sitting at home. Why did Pakistan target us? What crime did we commit?” Hamid Sharif said.
The shelling, which began without warning, caused widespread destruction in the Mandi sector, especially in the village of Baila. More than a hundred homes were damaged, dozens of vehicles reduced to ashes, and entire families left with nothing but debris.
Abdul Majeed, a resident of Baila, lost three houses and two vehicles in the bombardment.
“Is this war? Or is this terrorism? Pakistan has once again proved it has no regard for civilian life. We will never forget this cruelty,” he said, surveying the ruins of his once-thriving household.
Eyewitnesses compared the devastation to scenes from the 1971 war.
78-year-old Rehmat Ali said that the intensity was unimaginable. but this time, it was not soldiers who suffered—it was ordinary people, children, and women.
He said that Pakistan has crossed all limits of humanity. Thousands have been forced to flee. Many now live under the open sky, with little access to food, water, or medical help.
Shafeeqa Bano said that they bombed us while we were cooking dinner. My daughter still wakes up screaming. How long will the world stay silent as Pakistan turns our villages into graveyards?”
Meanwhile district authorities acted quickly, relocating affected families and providing temporary shelters.
Locals’ residents of nearby Mandi Tehsil opened their homes to the displaced. Pakistan may be shelling us, but we won’t let them destroy our humanity,” said Shabir Ahmed, who has taken in three families.
“This is not the first time Pakistan has killed our people and it would not be the last unless there was a decisive response. Enough is enough. We demand action, not sympathy,” he said.
Meanwhile the shelling also caused significant damage to property, with many houses and hundreds of vehicles affected, they said.
Defense Sources said that Pakistan carried out artillery shelling across the line of control, using heavy caliber Artillery guns and armed drones at Tangdhar, Uri, Poonch, Mendhar, Rajouri, Akhnoor & Udhampur in J&K areas which resulted in some losses and injuries to indian armed personnel.
“Indian Army responded proportionately,” he said.
(Inputs from Safaraz Chak-Poonch)
