The politically volatile region of Pakistan-administered Azad Jammu Kashmir (AJK) has once again plunged into a crisis of civil unrest. In late September, a local protest over government plans to drop subsidies for wheat and electricity rapidly transformed into a broader movement demanding comprehensive reform and regional ecomic relief. The demonstrations have pressured the government into negotiations and legal concessions, after initial harsh repression only further fueled public dissent.

Amnesty International on Sept. 25 urged Indian authorities to promptly and independently investigate the use of live fire during protests in Leh, Union Territory of Ladakh, one day after at least four people were reported killed and more than 50 injured.

Aakar Patel, chair of the board of Amnesty International India, called for de-escalation and respect for the right to peaceful protest, stating: "Any use of firearms in the context of an assembly must be an absolute last resort… The indiscriminate use of firearms against protesters is always unlawful."

International human and civil rights groups on Sept. 15 urged the UN Human Rights Council to maintain its oversight of the situation in Sri Lanka. The appeal comes ahead of the Council's 60th session, where member states' compliance with international human rights treaties is to be reviewed.

Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, the International Commission of Jurists and the Asian Forum for Human Rights & Development called for the renewal of the Sri Lanka Accountability Project, led by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). In their statement, the groups accused Sri Lanka's government of lacking the political will to establish an independent prosecutorial mechanism to ensure accountability for human rights violations and international crimes. The reported failures span across such questions as victim and witness protection, reconciliation between the Tamil and Sinhalese communities, and the repeal of counter-terrorism laws.

Protests in Nepal turned violent Sept. 8, as security forces opened fire on demonstrators, resulting in at least 19 deaths and over 400 injuries. Young activists had been taking to the streets to voice their frustrations over government corruption and a recently imposed social media ban. The repression only enflamed the situation, and Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli resigned from his post the next day. His resignation marks the end of a political career with the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist–Leninist) that saw him hold office from 2015-2016, 2018–2021, and again from July 2024 until his exit this week.

Amnesty International expressed concern June 24 over recurrent drone strikes conducted by Pakistan's military, which have caused unlawful loss of civilian lives. The rights group stated that the strikes in the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa have resulted in the deaths of 17 people this year, urging authorities to investigate these incidents and hold those responsible accountable.

India's government claims to have killed a top Naxalite rebel leader as part of a month-long military operation targeting the Maoist guerillas. Nambala Keshav Rao AKA "Basavaraju," secretary-general of the banned Communist Party of India–Maoist (CPI-M), was killed alongside 25 other insurgent fighters in a May 21 shoot-out in Narayanpur district, Chhattisgarh state. The Naxalites have waged an armed struggle for more than two generations in the impoverished interior regions of East and Central India, but New Delhi has now vowed to clear the country of the rebel movement by March 2026. (TNH)

A May 21 suicide attack on bus serving an army-run school in Khuzdar district of Pakistan's Balochistan province killed five people, three of them children. Islamabad, which faces accusations it was involved in last month's attack in Indian-administered Kashmir, quickly pointed the finger at neighboring India and Afghanistan. Both New Delhi and Kabul have denied the allegations. Balochistan has been the subject of a decades-long armed struggle for autonomy. Ethnic Baloch communities have accused Pakistani authorities of disenfranchisement, neglect and forced disappearances.

A tragic militant attack in the Baisaran Valley near Pahalgam in Indian-administered Kashmir on April 22 left at least 26 people dead, including Indian and foreign tourists. The incident prompted an immediate and strong response from the Indian government, which has blamed the attack on Pakistan-based groups. Within a day, India announced that it was suspending the Indus Waters Treaty—a World Bank-brokered agreement signed in 1960 that governs the use and distribution of waters in the Indus River basin between the two countries.