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French tourist shot in Srinagar

Mukhtar Ahmad in Srinagar

An unidentified person shot and seriously wounded a French tourist in Srinagar's Jamia Masjid area on Tuesday afternoon.

Police said a youth fired from close at Mark Peter, accompanied by his wife and tourist guide, Farooq Ahmad, near the entrance of the historic mosque.

The injured tourist was first admitted to the Institute of Medical Sciences, Srinagar. Later he was shifted to the Bone and Joint Hospital, Barzalla, and operated on.

"We were coming out through the main entrance when a youth fired three bullets and escaped,' said Ahmad, who received a bullet in his thigh. The person, he added, made good his escape in a waiting auto-rickshaw.

Senior state officials visited the hospital, where tight security prevails.

Peter was staying in a house-boat, Mark Glory. He had arrived from Delhi on September 16.

This is the first time that a foreign tourist has been attacked after the National Conference government came to power in September 1996.

In July 1995, Al-Faran, a little known militant outfit, had abducted five foreigners -- two Britons, an American, a German and a Norwegian. While the Norwegian, Hans Christian Ostro, was murdered, the fate of the rest is still unknown.

In June 1991, militants had attacked a group of Israeli tourists in the old city of Srinagar, killing one.

Meanwhile, panic has gripped the 60-odd foreign tourists -- from Israel, Germany, France, the US, Korea, England and Germany -- presently holidaying in Kashmir. Most of them are staying in house-boats on the Dal lake. Security arrangements have been tightened around the area.

A senior police officer said the police had been keeping a close watch on all foreigners for their protection since the US missile attack on Afghanistan.

The flow of foreign tourists was very low this year, mainly due to the Pokhran tests, four tour operators said.

In another incident, militants lobbed a hand grenade at a Border Security Force patrol, injuring two soldiers and an officer. The condition of the officer is critical.

In Anantnag, unidentified persons killed a police commando. And in Kupwara, security personnel gunned down three militants in a fierce encounter.

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