ISLAMABAD: Police reported that suspected rebels killed three soldiers in Indian-administered Kashmir during a clash as the disputed region observed the fourth anniversary of New Delhi’s imposition of direct rule.
Late Friday night, an army patrol engaged in a firefight with militants while searching for armed rebels in the forests of Halan in the southern Kashmir valley. The exchange of fire resulted in the trio of soldiers sustaining injuries, and they later succumbed to their wounds.
Police posted the update on Twitter and initiated a search operation to track down the rebels.
Since Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government ended the region’s limited autonomy in August 2019, clashes between armed rebels and government forces have significantly reduced. The government justified the move as a means to bring peace and development to the region, but in the four years since the change, nearly 900 people, including 144 Indian security forces members, have lost their lives.
This year alone, at least 63 people have been killed, including nine civilians, 16 government forces personnel, and 38 suspected rebels, compared to 253 deaths last year.
Despite the curtailment of civil liberties and restrictions on protests, young men continue to join rebel groups fighting for the region’s independence or its merger with Pakistan, which controls a smaller portion of the divided Himalayan territory.
India’s top court is currently examining the lawfulness of Modi’s government’s decision to suspend Kashmir’s constitutionally guaranteed semi-autonomy.
