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Kashmir unrest : Prohibitory orders in Srinagar, Kupwara

by IBNS 16 Apr 2016, 08:39 am

Srinagar, Apr 16 (IBNS) Authorities have imposed prohibitory orders in parts of Srinagar and Kashmir's frontier district Kupwara to maintain law and order following protests called by the separatist groups against the killing of five civilians, including a woman, since Wednesday.

The latest casualty took place in Kupwara district on Friday when 18-year-old  Arif Ahmad Dar was killed in army.

Police said hundreds of civilians assembled outside a camp of 47 Rashtriya Rifles in Natnusa village on National Highway 1A after Friday's  prayers to protest the recent deaths. 

"In order to protect their lives and the weapons and ammunition inside the camp, soldiers fired hitting four protesters. One of the protesters has died and the injured are being treated in the hospital." an official said. 

The Kashmir valley remained tense since Tuesday, when the army opened fire on a group of stone pelting people, protesting  against the alleged attempt to molest  a school girl in Handwara town.

The protesters alleged that a solider had tried to molest the girl, which the army later refuted by releasing a video that showed the girl speaking up without dropping any mention about any army man.

Four civilians, including a woman, were killed in separate incidents of firing and police action against protesters, while  hundreds of civilians and cops were injured in clashes.

Separatist leaders, including Syed Ali Geelani, Mirwaiz Umer Farooq, Muhammad Yasin Malik and others, have called for a  protest shutdown across the valley on Saturday against the killing of the teenager in army firing.

Authorities have already blocked the mobile internet services in parts of north Kashmir to check the spread of rumours.

Mobile Internet services like WhatsApp, Facebook are not available in Srinagar, Kupwara, Baramulla, Bandipora and Ganderbal districts of the Valley since Thursday morning.  

The board of school education and the University of Kashmir have postponed all exams scheduled for Saturday.

Train services between north Kashmir Baramulla town and Banihal town in the Jammu region also remained suspended since Wednesday.