Civilian killed in Kashmir’s south

By Zahid Rafiq

SRINAGAR, Jammu Kashmir

At least one civilian was killed and two others wounded by Indian armed forces in southern Jammu and Kashmir on Monday, local media reported.

The incident took place in Dusoo village of Pulwama district when Indian forces opened fire on protesters, who took to the streets against the forces’ Cordon and Search Operation, Deccan Herald reported.

The protesters were chanting slogans and throwing stones on the armed forces.

Dr. Saleem Tak, medical superintendent at a hospital in Srinagar, said 22-year-old Fayaz Ahmad Wani was dead by the time he reached the hospital. “He had suffered a bullet injury in his head,” Tak added.

“Terrorizing civilians is shameful, these tactics will not intimidate the people of Kashmir,” Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, a senior pro-Independence leader, said in a statement.

The Indian forces have yet to comment on the killing.

Kashmir, a Muslim-majority Himalayan region, is held by India and Pakistan in parts and claimed by both in full. A small sliver of Kashmir is also held by China.

Since they were partitioned in 1947, the two countries have fought three wars -- in 1948, 1965 and 1971 -- two of them over Kashmir.

Also, in Siachen glacier in northern Kashmir, Indian and Pakistani troops have fought intermittently since 1984. A cease-fire came into effect in 2003.

Some Kashmiri groups in Jammu and Kashmir have been fighting against Indian rule for independence, or for unification with neighboring Pakistan.

According to several human rights organizations, thousands of people have reportedly been killed in the conflict in the region since 1989.