SRINAGAR: In the latest act of state-sponsored terrorism, Indian forces on Saturday martyred seven Kashmiri youth in Shopian area of Indian held Kashmir.
According to Kashmir Media Service, the Indian troops killed the youth during a violent cordon-and-search operation in Kilora area of the district. The operation continued till reports last came in.
Meanwhile, forceful anti-India demonstrations erupted in the area. Indian troops and police used brute force to disperse the protesters, triggering clashes.
At least twenty protesters sustained injuries in the actions of the forces personnel.
District Hospital sources told media that 20 injured civilians were brought to their facility for treatment. They said that the injured were referred to a hospital in Srinagar for specialised treatment.
They further said that one of the injured had a bullet wound on his shoulder, while four others were hit by pellets.
The authorities have suspended mobile internet services in Shopian district to prevent people from sharing information about the situation.
STATE TERRORISM:
On Friday, Indian troops martyred two youth in Indian held Kashmir’s (IHK) Sopore district. Both of them were killed by the troops during a violent cordon and search operation in the district. The Indian occupation forces also suspended internet service and shut down educational institutes in the Baramulla district.
The first UN report on human rights in IHK focuses mainly on serious violations in the region from July 2016 to April 2018.
Activists estimate that up to 145 civilians were martyred by security forces and up to 20 civilians martyred by armed groups in the same period, it said.
“In responding to demonstrations that started in 2016, Indian security forces used excessive force that led to unlawful killings and a very high number of injuries,” the report said.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein called for maximum restraint and denounced the lack of prosecutions of Indian forces in Jammu and Kashmir due to a 1990 law giving them what he called “virtual immunity”.
In a statement, Zeid called for a commission of inquiry by the Human Rights Council, which opens a three-week session in Geneva on Monday, into all violations. Alleged sites of mass graves in the Kashmir Valley and Jammu should be investigated, he said.
India rejected the report, calling it a “selective compilation of largely unverified information” that sought to build “a false narrative”, adding that it violated the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
IHK PROTEST AGAINST PLEA CHALLENGING ARTICLE 35-A:
People of IHK on Friday held massive demonstrations in Srinagar and other major towns to protest against the petitions challenging Article 35-A of the Indian constitution.
The said article grants special rights and privileges to permanent residents of Jammu and Kashmir and bars non-Kashmiris from permanently settling in the territory.
A complete shutdown was observed in different areas of Kupwara and Baramulla districts against the killings. Despite restrictions, thousands of people participated in the funeral prayers of the martyred Bilal Ahmed at his ancestral Shatmuqam village in Lolab area of Kupwara district.
