Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) has erupted in three straight days of violent protests, leaving at least 10 civilians dead and exposing deep public anger at Islamabad.
On Wednesday, eight people were killed, four in Dhirkot (Bagh district), two in Muzaffarabad, and two in Mirpur, according to a report by News18. This follows two deaths on Tuesday, taking the death toll to double digits in less than a week.
The protests, led by the Awami Action Committee (AAC), have brought life to a standstill across PoK. Shops and markets remain shuttered, transport services are suspended, and public anger is spilling over into open confrontation with the state.
Protesters push back against state blockades
The morning saw dramatic visuals: protesters toppling shipping containers placed by authorities to block bridges leading into Muzaffarabad. Videos showed demonstrators pushing the containers off bridges and into rivers, a symbolic show of defiance against Islamabad’s attempts to control their march.
Despite a heavy crackdown, the AAC’s long march continues, with thousands of protesters pressing towards the PoK capital.
What the protesters want
The AAC has presented 38 demands, chief among them the abolition of 12 assembly seats reserved for Kashmiri refugees in Pakistan. Locals argue these seats skew representation and weaken local governance.
“Our campaign is for fundamental rights denied to our people for over 70 years. Either deliver on rights or face the wrath of the people,” AAC leader Shaukat Nawaz Mir declared, according to the News18 report.
He warned Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s administration that the current strike was merely “Plan A” — with harsher measures, including “Plan D,” waiting in reserve.
Islamabad responds with troops and curbs
The government has responded with thousands of troops deployed from Punjab and Islamabad, heavily armed patrols conducting flag marches through PoK towns, and restrictions on internet access.
Despite the military show of force, the anger on the ground shows little sign of easing.
Rising tensions after recent tragedy
The unrest comes days after a Pakistan Air Force strike in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa killed 30 civilians. The operation, carried out using Chinese-made LS-6 laser-guided bombs dropped by JF-17 jets, has amplified public fury over Islamabad’s military policies in its peripheries.
For many in PoK, the protests are not just about tariffs or assembly seats, they are about decades of political marginalisation and disregard for basic rights.
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