AS MANY as 12 people, including eight protesters and four security personnel, were killed as clashes erupted between the members of the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) and the law enforcement personnel in Rawalakot city of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), local media reported on Tuesday. Sardar Waheed Khan, the Commissioner of Poonch district in PoK, stated that 12 people were killed and several security officials were injured. He claimed that members of JAAC targetted the security forces’ personnel and the miscreants possessed modern weapons and tried to disrupt law and order in the area, Pakistani daily ‘The News International’ reported. After the incident, strict security arrangements have been put in place in PoJK and authorities are keeping a close watch on the situation. Meanwhile, PoJK Inspector General of Police spokesperson said that four law enforcement personnel were killed and over 20 police and security officials sustained injuries in the clash.

 

The clashes have been reported days after the PoJK Government declared JAAC a proscribed group under anti-terrorism laws ahead of its planned protest on June 9. blocked key access routes as part of the widening agitation. Kashmiri protesters staged a demonstration in front of the Pakistani Consulate in Bradford, the UK. This came days after 30 British MPs sought diplomatic intervention over the massive human rights abuses in PoK. Protesters on Tuesday gathered outside the Pakistani Consulate in Bradford and accused the Pakistani authorities of using excessive force against civilians participating in demonstrations across PoK. Organisers, many of them from the Kashmiri diaspora, claimed that several civilians were killed and injured during the firing by Pakistani security forces, particularly in Rawalakot, where protests have intensified since June 5. This came even as nearly 30 British MPs led by Bradford East MP Imran Hussain, a parliamentarian with roots in PoK, urged the UK government to intervene diplomatically amid reports of arrests, communication blackouts, and escalating tensions in the region.