Protesters, law enforcers clash during AJK ‘clearance’ operation

• Poonch DC says two security personnel martyred in separate incidents
• Seven protesters lose their lives
• Home secy vows to remove all hurdles to free movement of people, supplies created by JAAC

MUZAFFARABAD: As the government of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) vowed to clear all obstacles that were preventing the free movement of people and goods in the region, at least two law enforcers were martyred, while seven activists of the proscribed Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) lost their lives in separate clashes on Tuesday.

The clashes took place in Poonch division, a day before the JAAC’s planned “long march” towards Muzaffarabad. Last week, the outfit had given the government until July 14 to address their demands, failing which, they had announced plans to march on the AJK capital today (Wednesday).

The first clash occurred on Tuesday morning when law enforcement personnel raided Mutyalmera, on the outskirts of Rawalakot, following what officials described as intelligence about a large cache of weapons and ammunition allegedly stored in a house.

However, officials said they encountered resistance from JAAC supporters, leading to an exchange of fire.

Mutyalmera is one of around half a dozen locations on the outskirts of Rawalakot where JAAC activists and supporters have been maintaining relatively small protest camps. The alliance’s main sit-in, attended by its senior leadership, has been continuing at the Eidgah ground.

Poonch Divisional Commi­ssioner Sardar Waheed Khan told Dawn that one protester lost his life, while a Rangers man was martyred in the exchange of fire.

The second confrontation took place in Baloch, a tehsil of Sudhnoti district, where protesters blocked a convoy of law enforcement personnel heading towards Trarkhal.

The Poonch DC said that hundreds of protesters, some of whom were armed, pelted the convoy with stones, triggering violent clashes. In the ensuing skirmish, one policeman was martyred, while at least seven protesters lost their lives. The identities of the deceased protesters could not immediately be ascertained.

In a statement issued later in the day, AJK police said operatives of the proscribed JAAC had erected blockades at various points along the Kotli-Trarkhal highway, disrupting traffic and the supply of essential commodities.

The statement said that law enforcement personnel had launched a clearance operation to reopen the highway and restore the movement of traffic and supplies when “armed groups of the proscribed JAAC opened unprovoked and indiscriminate fire on security personnel” at Baithak Baloch. It confirmed that at least one police constable was martyred in the exchange, while around eight other law enforcers and a couple of Public Works Department employees suffered injuries.

Police said the situation had been under control, adding that operations to clear blocked highways and ensure the uninterrupted movement of traffic and essential supplies would continue.

Home secretary’s presser

At a separate press conference in Muzaffarabad, AJK Special Home Secretary Chaudhry Guftar Hussain said the operation had been launched to remove road blockades erected by the proscribed JAAC at various entry and exit points of the region and would continue until all major routes were reopened.

He said the government was committed to protecting lives and property and restoring normal economic, educational and commercial activities across AJK.

Referring to Tuesday’s violence, Hussain claimed that armed JAAC activists had opened fire on law enforcement personnel during a clearance operation, prompting a response. “The state will not accept any threat or blackmail, and all blackmailers will be treated with an iron hand,” he warned.

During the press conference, Hussain said that JAAC leader Khwaja Mehran had again given a 48-hour deadline to close all entry points to the state.

However, he said that the majority had distanced itself from the JAAC and that it did not have the “power to close the entry points and paralyse the state”. He also said higher educational institutions, including medical colleges, had reopened across the region and that banking operations had been restored after recent disruptions.

Asked about the JAAC’s planned long march, the Poonch DC said security forces were fully prepared to prevent the protesters from entering Rawalakot, which has remained under curfew since early last month.

Elsewhere in AJK, however, daily life largely continued as normal. Markets remained open and witnessed a steady flow of shoppers.

The government also allowed additional bank branches to resume operations in selected areas, where customers were seen queuing to carry out financial transactions. Internet services, however, remain suspended across the region, disrupting online education and affecting the livelihoods of those dependent on digital connectivity.

A division bench of the AJK High Court is scheduled to hear two petitions challenging the suspension of internet services tomorrow (Thursday).

Published in Dawn, July 15th, 2026 ...