Indian troops martyr Kashmiri youth in Sopore

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SRINAGAR: In yet another incident of brutality by Indian occupation forces, one more youth was martyred on Friday in Sopore town in occupied Kashmir.

The troops martyred the youth during a cordon and search operation in Warpora area of the town. The operation continued till last reports came in.

An Indian police official told reporters that the youth was a militant and was killed in an encounter with the troops.

Meanwhile, the occupation authorities have imposed restrictions and suspended mobile internet service in Sopore.

Earlier in 2018,  Jammu Kashmir Coalition of Civil Societies had declared the year the deadliest since 2008, when 505 people were killed.

Indian security forces have used excessive force in Kashmir and killed and wounded numerous civilians since 2016, the United Nations said in June as it called for an international inquiry into alleged violations in the disputed territory.

The UN report focuses mainly on serious violations committed in the northern Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir from July 2016 to April 2018. Activists estimate that up to 145 civilians were killed by security forces and up to 20 civilians killed 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 had also 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”.

Shortly after its publication, New Delhi had rejected the report, blasting it as “fallacious” and termed it “Pakistan authored” and a “nefarious conspiracy” against India. However, the allegations were shot down by the UN and Pakistan. “The report was developed through remote monitoring,”  the UN high commissioner had said in response to Indian allegations.