Security blitz, strike break calm in Kashmir
Monday, 19 July 2010
SRINAGAR, July 18 (AFP): A security lockdown and a general strike called by separatists crippled life in Indian-ruled Kashmir Sunday after a brief calm returned to the region Saturday.
Thousands of police and paramilitary forces moved into the streets of Srinagar, Indian Kashmir's summer capital, early Sunday warning residents not to venture out of their homes.
Police said there was no official curfew in place but were enforcing "strict restrictions" to prevent violent protests.
The scenic Himalayan region has been wracked by demonstrations since June 11 when police were accused of killing a 17-year-old teenage boy.
Since then, another 14 protesters and bystanders -- many of them youngsters -- have been killed.
The fresh tensions came after a brief lull in violence across the Kashmir valley on Saturday, following calls by separatists to resume "normal" life.
Schools, shops and offices reopened in the Muslim-majority valley for the day after being shut by weeks of anti-India protests.
Thousands of police and paramilitary forces moved into the streets of Srinagar, Indian Kashmir's summer capital, early Sunday warning residents not to venture out of their homes.
Police said there was no official curfew in place but were enforcing "strict restrictions" to prevent violent protests.
The scenic Himalayan region has been wracked by demonstrations since June 11 when police were accused of killing a 17-year-old teenage boy.
Since then, another 14 protesters and bystanders -- many of them youngsters -- have been killed.
The fresh tensions came after a brief lull in violence across the Kashmir valley on Saturday, following calls by separatists to resume "normal" life.
Schools, shops and offices reopened in the Muslim-majority valley for the day after being shut by weeks of anti-India protests.