Israelis have been warned not to travel to Kashmir out of concern they may become targets of a terrorist group operating in the restive region of northern India.
Yigal Carmon, the prime minister’s adviser on terrorism, issued the advisory following reports that a Moslem extremist group had threatened to arrest any Israelis attempting to enter the region because of alleged anti-terrorist cooperation between Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency and the Indian government.
The advisory was said to have been issued with the full agreement of the Indian government, which established relations with Israel in January.
Kashmir is one of several mountainous Asian destinations that are popular with Israelis who have just completed their army service and are looking for a bit of adventure before pursuing work or study.
A year ago, six Israeli backpackers were kidnapped from a houseboat on a Kashmiri lake. They managed to get away from the kidnappers in a fight in which one of the Israelis, Erez Kahane, 22, of Ra’anana was killed.
The Israelis, most of whom had elite army experience, managed to seize their assailants’ weapons, killing two of the kidnappers in their escape.
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