The UN is calling for an inquest into the deaths of the Pakistan-led insurgency in Kashmir United Nations News

The conflict in Kashmir has killed 31 people since June, leading UN rights chief Volker Turk to call for calm.

The United Nations human rights chief has called for an independent investigation into the deadly violence in Pakistan-administered Kashmir.

On Friday, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, urged Islamabad to launch a “prompt, thorough and impartial investigation” into all civilian and security deaths. At least 31 people have been killed in riots since last month, in preparation for regional elections later this month.

Riots have happened Jammu Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC)an umbrella group of entrepreneurs and influencers.

While the group had started protests against rising food prices and prices of essential goods, the current situation is starting a debate over seats in the legislature reserved for Kashmiri refugees. The JAAC is calling for the abolition of these seats, saying they allow non-residents to influence political outcomes.

UN officials were alarmed by Pakistan’s decision to designate the JAAC as an anti-terrorist organization under anti-terrorism laws.

The international organization has warned that the use of anti-terrorist measures to prevent peaceful assembly and blocking of the Internet raises concerns about freedom of communication.

The problem is getting worse diplomatic dispute for a long time Among its nuclear-armed neighbors are India and Pakistan, both of which have claimed disputed Himalayan territory since independence in 1947.

According to the Pakistani newspaper Dawn, the situation reached a deadly level July 14 in a major conflict in Poonch divisionwhere security forces tried to clear roadblocks ahead of the “long march” organized by JAAC to Muzaffarabad. The attack killed nine people – seven activists and two police officers.

Defending the government’s handling of the violence, Poonch Divisional Commissioner Waheed Khan told Reuters that protesters blocked security forces and attacked officials. “Police and security officials responded in self-defense.”

In New Delhi, External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in a statement issued on Wednesday that the unrest was “a direct result of Pakistan’s decades of damage to the region”.

Turk has called for immediate calm, urging “meaningful and inclusive political dialogue” on security-led measures to address grievances about independence and inflation.