Police clear hospital siege in Pakistan-administered Kashmir after deadly clashes

Pakistani security forces ended a siege at Rawalakot's main hospital after overnight clashes with protesters on Monday, leaving at least seven people dead, including four police officers. The violence erupted ahead of a planned rally by the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC), which the regional government had designated a terrorist organization two days earlier. Authorities said normalcy has since been restored.

What is the unrest in Pakistan-administered Kashmir about?

The JAAC is an anti-government movement demanding economic and governance reforms in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, including lower energy prices, free healthcare, and the abolition of 12 reserved legislative seats. The regional government banned the group and made mass arrests ahead of a planned June 9 rally. The JAAC has rejected its terrorist designation as an act of oppression, insisting its campaign is political and economic in nature.

How did the Rawalakot hospital siege begin?

The violence escalated after the fatal shooting of a young man named Shahzeb in Rawalakot. Protesters alleged he was killed by police, a claim authorities denied, and police registered a case against unidentified masked gunmen. Demonstrators placed his body outside the Combined Military Hospital and refused to bury it until the ban on their committee was lifted.

The Inspector General of Police for Kashmir said security forces carried out a "systematic and limited" operation to break the blockade of the CMH Rawalakot, which had been surrounded by what authorities described as "violent and armed elements" affiliated with the banned group. The police statement said the four officers from local police and Frontier Constabulary were killed by gunfire from protesters, while three members of the banned group died in their own indiscriminate shooting. Several others were injured.

What does the JAAC say happened at the hospital?

The Joint Action Committee said all demonstrators outside the hospital were peaceful and accused law enforcement of firing directly on them, causing significant casualties. Committee member Ilyas Khan said many activists were missing and over 40 injured had been taken to the hospital by police. Local commissioner Sardar Waheed Khan earlier confirmed five civilians were killed and more than 50 people injured overall, including 13 police officers.

What restrictions are in place in Pakistan-administered Kashmir?

Section 144, which prohibits gatherings of four or more people, has been imposed in Muzaffarabad, the regional capital. Internet services remain suspended in Rawalakot and Muzaffarabad, where heavy deployments of police and paramilitary forces are in place. Authorities said traffic is flowing and markets are open in Rawalakot, with hospital services resumed.

Pakistan's Minister for Parliamentary Affairs, Tariq Fazal Chaudhry, said on Sunday that 35 of the group's 38 demands had already been met. "It's negative and false propaganda that the government hasn't addressed the demands," he told a press conference. The JAAC argues that reserved legislative seats for Kashmiris who relocated from India-administered Kashmir allow major Pakistani parties to unduly influence the local parliament.