Young man killed in Kashmir clashes
SRINAGAR, Indian-administered Kashmir: A young man was killed and several others injured in Indiancontrolled Kashmir on Friday in clashes that erupted during a gunbattle between separatists and government forces in the disputed region, officials and witnesses said.
Inspector-General of Police Muneer Ahmed Khan said government forces cordoned off southern Arwani village on a tip that at least two Kashmiri separatists were hiding there.
The fighting began when the militants began firing in an attempt to break through the siege, Khan said.
As the fighting raged, thousands of people in the village and neighboring areas ignored the government security lockdown and marched to Arwani in an attempt to help the trapped separatists escape. They hurled rocks at the troops and chanted slogans against Indian rule.
Khan said a civilian protester was killed and at least five others were wounded in the crossfire between the government forces and separatists. However, villagers dismissed the police version, saying the civilian casualties occurred when the Indian forces fired live ammunition, shotgun pellets and tear gas to disperse the protesters.
Authorities suspended mobile Internet services in Kashmir and cellphone service in some areas of southern Kashmir, fearing activists would mobilize anti-India protests in the region.
Protests against Indian rule followed by clashes were also reported in other areas of the region. Several people were reportedly injured.
In recent years, Kashmiris, mainly youths, have displayed open solidarity with anti-India separatists and sought to protect them by engaging troops in street clashes during military operations against the militants.
Also on Friday, Indian soldiers fired at a taxi after it ignored orders to halt at a checkpoint in northern Bandipora, Khan said. Two civilians received bullet injuries but were reported to be out of danger.
Nuclear-armed rivals India and Pakistan each administer part of Kashmir, but both claim the Himalayan territory in its entirety. Separatist groups have been fighting since 1989 for Kashmir’s independence or merger with neighboring Pakistan.
Nearly 70,000 people have been killed in the fighting and the ensuing Indian crackdown.