Indian army kills 2 freedom fighters in Kashmir

SRINAGAR, Jammu and Kashmir (AA) – The Indian army killed two freedom fighters who attempted to enter Indian-occupied Kashmir from the Pakistan-administered side.

“An anti-infiltration operation was launched by Indian army on the intervening night of 08-09 Sept in Lam area. Two terrorists have been neutralized and two AK-47 rifles and a pistol have been thus far recovered,” said the army’s Knight Corps on X.

The area is in the Rajouri district of the disputed region’s Jammu province, where fighters for Kashmir’s freedom from occupation have killed over 50 Indian soldiers in sophisticated guerrilla attacks over the last three years.

At least 32 people, including Indian soldiers and civilians, have been killed in insurgency-related incidents this year alone, according to local media reports.

– ‘Want dialogue with Pakistan’ –

The overnight “military operation” comes amid campaigning for a three-phased election for the local assembly, which will begin on September 18.

This is the first Legislative Assembly election in 10 years, especially after the ruling Hindu nationalist Indian government in the center stripped the Muslim-majority region of its autonomy in August 2019, raising fears of demographic flooding from outsiders.

The election is being hailed as one of the most significant in the chequered political history of the troubled Muslim region, which is claimed in full by India and Pakistan. It will be a sort of referendum on India’s 2019 decision, which has riled both Pakistan and China.

Campaigning for the polls in the Banihal area of Jammu province, India’s Defense Minister Rajnath Singh said that his country is willing to engage in dialogue with Pakistan “if it stops supporting ‘terrorism’ in Jammu and Kashmir. We want improved relations with Pakistan but first of all, they should stop ‘terrorism.’”

Reacting to Singh’s statement, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, leader of a Kashmiri liberation group said Kashmiri liberation organizations have always supported a negotiated peaceful settlement of the dispute and have participated in nearly every dialogue initiated by the Indian government in the past.

Kashmir, a former princely state in British colonial India populated by Muslims, was sold off to an oppressive Hindu dynasty that acceded to India at the time of partition, defying the will of the majority of the Muslim population. India, which holds most of the region under occupation to date, has refused to allow referendum or plebiscite in line with UN resolutions of 1948, in order to allow Kashmiris their right to self-determination.