Kashmir Human Shield

Disturbing Video Shows Indian Army Using Protester As A Human Shield

An Indian Army spokesperson, Colonel Rajesh Kalia, said in a statement, “The contents of the video are being verified and investigated.”

by teleSUR

Video footage showing a young man tied to the front of an army vehicle being paraded in a village located in central Kashmir’s Budgam district went viral last week over social media. A Hindi-speaker heard in the background says, “Stone throwers will meet a similar fate.”

An Indian Army spokesperson, Colonel Rajesh Kalia, said in a statement, “The contents of the video are being verified and investigated.”

Internet services, including the broadband connections in Kashmir, were shut down the night before the by-elections on April 9 and resumed on April 13, after which the videos started surfacing online, reported the Economic Times. The area was the scene of violent demonstrations last weekend as Indian police and paramilitary forces clashed with protesters. During the unrest, the government forces killed eight civilians and injured more than 150 others, also obstructing the polling in the region.

 

A 7.14 voter turnout was recorded initially but the re-poll at 38 polling stations later showed a mere 2 percent voter turnout. “Only 709 of the 34,169 voters exercised their franchise across all the 38 polling stations by the time the polling ended at 4 p.m.,” an election official told the Hindustan Times Thursday.

Anti-India sentiment reigns strong in the India-administered Kashmir of nearly 12 million where 70 percent are Muslims. The deployment of Indian troops in the region has caused resentment and the rebels have openly expressed an interest in Kashmir’s liberation or an alliance with Pakistan since the early 1990s.

The Kashmir conflict is at the heart of tension between India and Pakistan. So far, two out of three wars the two neighboring countries have fought since their independence in 1947 have been over Kashmir. India continues to accuse Pakistan of training and arming rebel groups in the region to gain control, while Pakistan has continued to deny the claim.

According to Live Mint, there’s been an alarming increase in Kashmiri youths joining militant groups, especially after the death of Burhan Wani, a commander of the Kashmir-based militant outfit Hizbul Mujahideen killed in July 2016.

© teleSUR

 

Stories published in our Daily Digests section are chosen based on the interest of our readers. They are republished from a number of sources, and are not produced by MintPress News. The views expressed in these articles are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect MintPress News editorial policy.

You Might Also Like

Comments
Featured Videos
In this photo taken March 15, 2017, an AR-15 style rifle manufactured by Battle Rifle Co. is display in Webster, Texas. (AP/Lisa Marie Pane)

A Culture Of Violence: A Parade of Stephen Paddocks With A Huge Pile Of Guns

Buried among statistics on gun profits and lobbying efforts is the terrifying reality of just how unique America’s gun obsession and associated violence are. And the equally terrifying plan by the NRA to “normalize” gun possession in nearly every nook and cranny of American life.

People watch a TV screen showing an image of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un delivering a statement in response to U.S. President Donald Trump's speech to the United Nations, in Pyongyang, North Korea, at the Seoul Railway Station in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Sept. 22, 2017. (AP/Ahn Young-joon)

Media On North Korea: Easier To Demonize Than Try To Understand

U.S. campaigns for regime change characteristically focus on the “madness” of the “dictators” to be toppled. In the case of North Korea, the narrative is spiced by the country’s developing nuclear capabilities — which North Korea views as its main line of defense against . . . regime change.

A Rohingya Muslim woman, who crossed over from Myanmar into Bangladesh, lies unconscious on the shore of the Bay of Bangal after the boat she was traveling in capsized at Shah Porir Dwip, Bangladesh, Thursday, Sept. 14, 2017. Nearly three weeks into a mass exodus of Rohingya fleeing violence in Myanmar, thousands were still flooding across the border Thursday in search of help and safety in teeming refugee settlements in Bangladesh. (AP Photo/Dar Yasin)

Nearly 2,000 Dead In Myanmar Amid Military-Led Ethnic Cleansing Of Rohingya

Aung Su Kyi, the leader of Myanmar, has been accused of “legitimizing genocide” against the country’s Rohingya Muslims, despite being a Nobel Prize laureate. Her country’s military has massacred thousands of Rohingya, leading some to call for Kyi’s Nobel Prize to be revoked.

Demonstrators hold photos of missing activist Santiago Maldonado, during a protest at Plaza de Mayo in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Friday, Sept. 1, 2017. Human rights groups say Maldonado went missing a month ago, after Argentine border police captured him during an operation against Mapuche Indians who were blocking a highway in Argentina's Patagonia. (AP/Natacha Pisarenko)

Fate Of Seized Activist May Point To New Era Of State Violence In Argentina

It has been a month since Argentinian indigenous activist Santiago Maldonado was bundled into a government van. Amidst government denials, demonstrators–cognizant of the nation’s bleak history of state violence–want answers: evidence of Maldonado’s safety and whereabouts.