Kashmiris Struggle to Pick Up the Pieces After India-Pakistan Clashes and Uncertainty

By A Staff Reporter

Poonch, Kashmir – The delicate peace that had settled in Kashmir for a brief moment was shattered last week, as India and Pakistan engaged in one of the most intense conflicts in decades. The fighting, which saw missiles, drones, and artillery shelling traded back and forth across the Line of Control (LoC), plunged the region back into a nightmare of violence and uncertainty. For Mohammad Iqbal, a 47-year-old worker at a local power plant, the horror began with a frantic call from his family in the middle of the night.

“They said artillery shells were exploding around our home,” Iqbal recalled. “I told them all to hunker down in one room together on the ground floor and hopefully things would become okay by morning.” But the shelling did not stop, and by the time the dawn arrived, the situation had only escalated. For the next four days, Iqbal’s village near Poonch, in India-administered Kashmir, became a battlefield, as India and Pakistan fought the most serious clash in decades, raising the specter of an all-out war between the nuclear-armed neighbors.

The region, surrounded by pine forests and towering, icy peaks, has long been one of the most militarized places on earth. Kashmir remains the trigger for multiple wars between India and Pakistan, both of whom claim the territory in full but control it only in part. Despite the natural beauty of the area, it has borne the scars of decades of conflict.

Last week, the shelling intensified following the massacre of tourists in Indian-administered Kashmir, an attack that India blamed on Pakistan, though Islamabad denied any involvement. Two hours into the fighting on Wednesday morning, Iqbal received news that his brother-in-law’s home had been struck by a shell. The explosion, which hit a nearby water tank, shattered windows and sent shards of glass flying. His brother-in-law and niece were wounded in the blast.

What followed was a frantic rush to find transport for the wounded. “As people started evacuating, there were a few people with cars, so everyone just poured into whatever vehicle they could find,” Iqbal said. “For a few hours, it was difficult to locate everyone. People got split up. But finally, at the hospital, my family came together.”

At the hospital, Iqbal found his brother-in-law, a policeman, critically injured. Medical staff were overwhelmed by the influx of casualties from the surrounding areas. “It was a chaotic scene,” Iqbal recalled. Despite the best efforts of the medical staff, two of Iqbal’s neighbors did not survive the shelling. “We are lucky. My brother-in-law made it, but many others didn’t,” he said, his voice heavy with grief.

As the ceasefire holds, Kashmiris are left to pick up the pieces, facing the deep scars left by the recent violence. The emotional toll is palpable, as families cope with the loss of loved ones and the uncertainty of living in a region where peace always seems just out of reach