At Least 11 Killed in Rawalakot Clashes as Azad Kashmir Unrest Turns Deadly

Hours after Azad Jammu & Kashmir's top court ruled that 12 legislative seats reserved for Kashmiri refugees are constitutionally protected and cannot be abolished without a constitutional amendment, violence erupted in Rawalakot, Poonch district. JAAC executive member Shahzeb Habib was shot dead near the Barmang Bridge as the territory braced for a shutdown called by the banned Jammu Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC). A mob subsequently attacked a hospital, and clashes between police and protesters left at least 11 dead and more than 70 injured according to Al Jazeera, while Dawn confirmed seven civilians and four law-enforcement personnel killed. The unrest, rooted in disputes over electricity tariffs, wheat subsidies, and the refugee-reserved seats, marked the gravest crisis in Pakistan-administered Kashmir in years, days ahead of AJK assembly elections.