British woman stabbed to death on Kashmir houseboat

INDIA: A young British woman holidaying in Indian Kashmir was found dead in a pool of blood on a houseboat Saturday, police said after arresting a Dutch man on suspicion of her murder.

The 43-year-old Dutch national was taken into custody as he tried to flee the scenic Kashmir valley in the foothills of the Himalayas, police superintendent Tahir Sajjad told AFP. “We walked into a pool of blood in her room,” Sajjad said. “We found a sharp-edged knife close to her body. The young lady had multiple stab wounds.” The attacker broke the latch on the cabin door of the 24-year-old British tourist who had been staying in the houseboat on the picturesque Dal Lake in the Kashmir city of Srinagar for two months, police said.

Police were investigating whether the victim had been sexually assaulted in the incident, which comes after a string of attacks on tourists travelling in India. They said her body had been sent for a post-mortem examination.

“We can confirm the Jammu and Kashmir police have the body of a British woman. We have contacted the next-of-kin and we are providing consular assistance to the family,” a British High Commission (embassy) spokeswoman told AFP in New Delhi.

AFP