India-occupied Kashmir | Pakistan

Police in India-occupied Kashmir asked at least three journalists working in the region to sign a pledge vowing not to “disturb peace” in the region, two of them told Reuters on Wednesday. A third journalist, an assistant editor with the Indian Express newspaper, was summoned to a police station in Srinagar, the capital of the federal territory, but did not sign the pledge, the newspaper said in a report published on Wednesday. India has imposed several restrictions in the region after revoking its constitutional autonomy in 2019, laying out rules for how the region is covered and reported. A spokesperson for Srinagar police did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Reuters. The Indian Express, one of India’s most respected dailies, said its journalist was summoned four times between January 15 and 19 and asked to sign the pledge on January 16. “He has not signed the bond as asked by the police. The Indian Express is committed to doing what is necessary to uphold and protect the rights and dig...

Powerful torrents driven by intense rain that smashed into a Himalayan mountain village in India-occupied Kashmir killed at least 37 people on Thursday, a top disaster management official told AFP. It is the second major deadly flooding disaster in India this month. “Dead bodies of 37 people have been recovered,” said Mohammad Irshad, a top disaster management official, adding there was no count of any missing people available. Irshad told AFP 150 wounded people were also rescued from the disaster site, “50 of whom are severely injured”, all sent to nearby hospitals. Sushil Kumar, a resident of nearby Atholi village, told AFP: “I saw at least 15 dead bodies brought to the local hospital.” The disaster occurred in Chasoti town of Kishtwar district, a pit stop on a popular pilgrimage route. It comes a little over a week after a heavy flood and mudslide engulfed an entire village in the Himalayan state of Uttarakhand. Earlier, Kishtwar Deputy Commissioner Pankaj Kumar Sharma said, “We have found 34 dead bodies a...