President Donald Trump extended his “deepest sympathies” on Tuesday after gunmen reportedly killed at least 20 people in India’s Kashmir region. 

“Deeply disturbing news out of Kashmir,” Trump wrote on TRUTH Social. “The United States stands strong with India against Terrorism. We pray for the souls of those lost, and for the recovery of the injured. Prime Minister Modi, and the incredible people of India, have our full support and deepest sympathies. Our hearts are with you all!” 

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters that Trump had been briefed by National Security Adviser Mike Waltz on the matter. 

Trump will speak with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi “as soon as he possibly can to express his heartfelt condolences for those lost,” Leavitt said at Tuesday’s White House briefing. “And our prayers are with those injured in our nation’s support for our ally, India. These types of horrific events by terrorists are why those of us who work for peace and stability in the world continue our mission. So we’ll give you a readout of that call later this afternoon.” 

The country’s police also described the incident as a “terror attack” and blamed militants fighting against Indian rule. 

“This attack is much larger than anything we’ve seen directed at civilians in recent years,” Omar Abdullah, the region’s top elected official, wrote on social media.

Indian security officers patrol in armored vehicles near Pahalgam in south Kashmir after assailants indiscriminately opened fired at tourists in Pahalgam, in Indian-controlled Kashmir, on Tuesday, April 22, 2025.  (AP Photo/Dar Yasin)

Two senior police officers said at least four gunmen, whom they described as militants, fired at dozens of tourists from close range, according to the Associated Press. The officers said at least three dozen others were injured, many in serious condition.

Most of the tourists killed were Indian, the officers reportedly told the AP on condition of anonymity, in keeping with departmental policy. 

Officials collected at least 20 bodies in Baisaran meadow, some three miles from the disputed region’s resort town of Pahalgam. 

The meadow in Pahalgam is a popular destination, surrounded by snow-capped mountains and dotted with pine forests. It is visited by hundreds of tourists every day as Kashmir, known for Himalayan foothills and exquisitely decorated houseboats, has become a major domestic tourist destination. It has drawn millions of visitors who enjoy a strange peace kept by ubiquitous security checkpoints, armored vehicles and patrolling soldiers.

Nuclear-armed rivals India and Pakistan each administer part of Kashmir, but both claim the territory in its entirety.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility. Police and soldiers were searching for the attackers.

“We will come down heavily on the perpetrators with the harshest consequences,” India’s home minister, Amit Shah, wrote on social media. He arrived in Srinagar, the main city in Indian-controlled Kashmir, and convened a meeting with top security officials. He said Modi, on an official visit in Saudi Arabia, has been briefed.

Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, a key resistance politician and Kashmir’s top religious cleric, condemned what he described as a “cowardly attack on tourists,” writing on social media that “such violence is unacceptable and against the ethos of Kashmir which welcomes visitors with love and warmth.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.