A tourist, Rishi Bhatt, was ziplining at a resort in Indian-controlled Kashmir when he decided to record himself enjoying the ride. While he smiled at the camera, he unbeknowingly captured tourists running for their lives, as an attack carried out by a terrorist group took the lives of 26 people at the resort.
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The 53-second video, according to NDTV, shows the Bhatt wearing a blue checked shirt, sunglasses, and a helmet as he starts riding down the zipline. By using a selfie stick, the Bhatt begins recording his reaction while ziplining, smiling to the camera while showing the rest of the resort behind him.
However, unaware of what was happening on the ground, the video recorded by Bhatt captured the sound of gunshots in the background. At the same time, the video shows dozens of tourist running for their lives. Finally, as Bhatt finished his ziplining ride, one of the other tourists is shown falling. It is believed that the tourist had suffered a gunshot wound.
Rishi Bhatt talked about his haunting experience with ANI News International, an Indian news agency.
"I took my wife and son and started running," Bhatt said. "We saw people hiding at a spot which was like a pit, so they could not be spotted easily. We hid there too."
Surviving The Attack
Bhatt would then detail the harrowing moments that followed as he and his family were witnesses to the massacre.
"When the firing stopped a little after 8-10 minutes, we started running toward the main gate," Bhatt continued. "The firing resumed, and four to five people were shot. Around 15-16 tourists were shot in front of us. When we reached the gate, we saw the local residents had already left."
Fortunately, one pony guide present at the resort managed to help Bhatt and his family out of there.
"The Army was present in the lower areas," Bhatt added. There was no Army official at the main location."
According to the New York Post, a total of 26 people died in the terrorist attack. Twenty-five of them were Indian tourists, the 26th being Nepali.
Following the attack, the Resistance Front, a terrorist insurgent group in the Jammu and Kashmir region, claimed responsibility for the attack. The group has ties with Lashkar-e-Taiba, a Pakistani jihadist organization whose objective is to merge Kashmir with Pakistan.
The attack prompted a swift response from Indian authorities. As per the Post, diplomatic ties with Pakistan were downgraded, and Pakistani nationals' visa services were revoked. Pakistan, in turn, closed its airspace to Indian flights. Moreover, it warned India that any attempt to divert water from flowing into Pakistan would be considered an act of war.
