Indian troops have killed at least three young men in the Kishtwar district of Indian-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IoJK).

The Indian army on Sunday said the three youths were killed during a military operation in the high-altitude district, following “credible intelligence of rebel presence” in the area. 

The statement added that weapons were recovered from the site and that the forces displayed “tactical precision, seamless synergy and resolute aggression” during the gunfight, dominating the encounter site.

“War-like stores including two AK-47 rifles have also been recovered,” the Indian army said.

State-run Radio Pakistan reported that the youths were killed in the Chatroo Forest area. It said that additional troops were deployed to the location and that “all entry and exit points have been sealed”.

The fresh case of Indian atrocities in the troubled valley comes just days after Pakistan observed the annual Kashmir Day on Feb 5, renewing its pledge to support the Kashmiri people’s just struggle for their inalienable right to self-determination.


Marking the occasion, rallies, demonstrations and seminars were held across the country while human chains will be formed at all entry points of Azad Jammu & Kashmir (AJK).


A one-minute silence was also be observed nationwide to honour the martyrs of the Kashmir freedom movement.


As messages from the country’s political leadership poured in, President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif reaffirmed Pakistan’s steadfast moral, diplomatic and political support for the Kashmiri people, reiterating their right to self-determination as enshrined in the relevant United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolutions.


Separately, the armed forces, in a joint message issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), reaffirmed their unwavering support for the “resilient people of Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK)”.