At least 11 people are said to have been killed in violent clashes in Pakistan-administered Kashmir as protesters demanded changes to how seats were allocated in the regional parliament.
“At least four security forces personnel have been killed so far,” said a statement issued by Kashmir police on Monday.
The statement said more than 20 others were wounded after members of the banned Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) stormed a military hospital in Rawalakot on Sunday.
The regional government banned the JAAC on Friday over threats to public order and security.
About 100 people have been arrested and tourists have been asked to leave the region.
The JAAC said that seven civilians had been killed during the clashes. It urged people to lockdown the entire region on June 9 in protest.
The group wants to abolish the 12 seats in the Azad Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly that are reserved for refugees from Indian-held Kashmir.
A top court in the region ruled on Sunday that only a constitutional amendment can abolish the reserved seats.
“The state has started killing us,” JAAC leader Shaukat Nawaz Mir said in a video message on X.
Police appealed to the public not to believe what they called the propaganda of the banned group.
The Himalayan region of Kashmir remains a flashpoint between Pakistan and India and is also a cause of domestic tension in both countries. Both countries control parts of the territory but claim it in full.
