Pakistan Kashmir Clashes Kill 11 Over 12 Refugee Seats Ahead of June 9 Protest

3 articles · Updated · Al Jazeera English · Jun 9

At least 11 people were killed in Rawalakot after police and supporters of the banned JAAC clashed a day before a planned June 9 rally over legislative representation.
The violence followed a court ruling that 12 seats reserved for Kashmiri refugees in Pakistan are constitutionally protected, a decision JAAC rejects as giving refugees outsized political influence.
Officials said four police officers, one passer-by and six protesters died; 73 people were injured — including 23 security personnel and 50 protesters — and 30 suspects were arrested.
Police accused JAAC supporters of opening fire, using petrol bombs, damaging property and surrounding a military hospital, while JAAC called the crackdown a massacre and vowed to press ahead with the protest.
The regional government had already outlawed JAAC under anti-terror laws and urged tourists to leave, underscoring how a long-running movement over rights, prices and refugee seats has become a wider security flashpoint.