Weeks after India and Pakistan agreed to open the Line of Control in Kashmir in the wake of the devastating earthquake, families divided by the de facto border remain frustrated that only relief workers have been allowed to cross—not local residents. Now, following weeks of pressure, Pakistani authorities have alloweds 83 residents from the Indian side of the line to cross over to meet with their kin in stricken villages. The case of some 100 residents seeking to cross from Pakistani to Indian controlled territory remains pending. (Reuters [1], Nov. 16)
Within hours of the announcement, four people were killed and 45 wounded when a car bomb exploded on a busy intersection in Srinagar, capital of Indian Kashmir. Al-Arifeen, claimed responsibility for the explosion in a telephone call to the Kashmir News Service. Police said that it was a front for the banned group Lashkar-e-Taiba. (Pakistan Daily Times [2], Nov. 17)
Rights abuses by Indian authorities in Kahsmir are also continuing. Shabir Ahmad Shah, 22, and Aijaz Ahmad Dar, 19, of Palhalan-Pattan were reportedly killed when they were taken from their classroom by Indian army troops to serve as "human shields" in search operation in the area. They were killed when firing erupted during a search of a house where suspected militants were hiding. Police used clubs and teargas to put down protests following the incident, leading to 15 injured. (Syrian news agency SANA via Kashar World News [3])
See our last post on Kashmir [4], and the recent terror attack in Pakistan [5].
