A Catholic school and convent in the town of Poonch, India, became a tragic scene last week when shelling from Pakistan military forces struck the area, resulting in the deaths of three students. The attack occurred as hostilities erupted between the two countries’ militaries before a sudden cessation of conflict over the weekend.
“One shell fell near our Christ School campus at Poonch, killing a twin brother and sister. The siblings were our students,” said Bishop Ivan Pereira of the Diocese of Jammu, which encompasses the entire state of Jammu and Kashmir, according to CNA. Another shell damaged the convent of the Carmelites of Mary Congregation, breaking water tanks and solar panels. While the school is now closed, the nuns have been relocated to a safer convent, Pereira said.
Father Shijo Kanjirathingal, principal of the Christ School in Poonch, recounted the tragic events that unfolded. “The two students who died were hit by splinters from shelling when they were moving out to flee the area with their parents after their house was hit by a shell,” he told CNA. A third student was fatally struck by splinters while in a moving vehicle.
Despite the damage, Father Kanjirathingal expressed gratitude that the school itself was not directly hit, though many glass panes were shattered by shell splinters. “Thank God, nobody was injured in our compound, which houses over two dozen staff including 16 teachers,” he said. The resident staff, mostly from outside the state, have been evacuated for safety, and the second Christ School, located closer to the border, has also been shut down.
The conflict flared after Indian security forces launched aerial assaults against what they identified as terrorist centers inside Pakistan on May 7. The operation left 31 people dead, and the Indian government accused Pakistan of harboring terrorists responsible for the April 22 killing of 26 non-Muslim male tourists in the Pahalgam valley. Among the victims was Susil Nathaniel, a Catholic man executed in front of his wife and children for reportedly failing to recite a Muslim couplet. Bishop Thomas Mathew of Indore presided over his funeral, calling Nathaniel a “double martyr” who gave his life “for the nation and for the Catholic faith,” UCA News reported.
The conflict, which has roots in the long-standing territorial dispute over Kashmir, ended abruptly over the weekend with both sides agreeing to a cessation of hostilities. Pope Leo XIV acknowledged the peace agreement in his first Regina Caeli address, saying, “I rejoice at the recent peace made between India and Pakistan,” and expressed his hope for a lasting accord.
