Clashes between security forces and protesters in Pakistan-administered Kashmir left at least nine people dead on Tuesday, the deadliest single day of unrest in a month-long wave of violence that has killed 28 since demonstrations erupted in early June.
The fatalities included seven civilians, a paramilitary ranger and a police officer across Poonch and Sudhnoti districts, local officials said. Authorities have deployed roughly 4,000 police and paramilitary personnel to block a planned march from Rawalakot to Muzaffarabad called by the banned Jammu Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee, which was proscribed under anti-terrorism laws last month.
The dispute centres on 12 reserved legislative seats for refugees who migrated in 1947, which the regional Supreme Court has ruled cannot be abolished without a constitutional amendment. The unrest comes as the region prepares for elections scheduled for July 27.