SRINAGAR, July 13: Holidaymakers are fleeing held Kashmir after a series of attacks by militants on tourists in the Himalayan region killed eight visitors, tour operators and officials said on Thursday.

The famed houseboats on Dal lake, at the heart of the region’s summer capital, Srinagar, are quiet, and normally packed flights are arriving with rows of empty seats as fears grow of a concerted campaign to scare off visitors.

“Planes packed with tourists are flying from Srinagar to other parts of the country while those flying in are more than half empty,” Aijaz Ahmad, an airline official, said.

More than 300,000 mainly Indian visitors have holidayed in Kashmir this year.—Reuters