2018 in Pictures- Broken Hopes and Shattered Dreams, As Families Loose their Beloved

January 10

Tawseef Nazir

The Himalayan valley – Kashmir is now often gripped with silence, with coils of tangled wires blocking its alleys. Indian troops in battle gear rove the streets in this Himalayan valley of fabled beauty.

The decades long conflict in the valley saw a volcanic eruption, the troubles visible in the valley today began in July 2016 when Indian forces killed three rebels in South Kashmir including the student turned rebel, Burhan Wani- the Valley has been on the edge since.

In a paroxysm of Anti India Anger the residents- thousands at a time- defy restrictions to come out on the streets, raining stones at everything that symbolizes India in Kashmir. They fight pitched battles with armed forces, who respond with lethal force, as a result hundreds of civilians have been killed during these protests.

The killing of Burhan Wani triggered a civilian uprising, strengthened by an unending memory of killings, torture and mass repression at the hands of Indian government forces, which for years has struggled to put down a bloody Anti India insurgency that erupted in late 1980s.

 

Every day in Kashmir is mourning for the locals, as it brings news of more unarmed civilians killed somewhere in Kashmir. The locals armed with sticks, stones and motolov cocktails emerge from their homes to take on the collective might of a flailing administration for the cause of ‘Azadi’ (independence).

The south Asian nuclear powers India and Pakistan have been claiming this Himalayan region in its entirety and fought three wars and have been engaged in an unending exchange of gunfire across the line of control that divides Kashmir between India and Pakistan. According to an official data released by the Indian government in august this year the cease fire truce agreement had been violated a mammoth 1432 times from January till early August 2018.

The year 2018 according to local news reports has been the deadliest in a decade. Stats reveal that 140 civilians have been killed this year while 230 rebels and 86 government force personnel have also been shot dead, ironically 2018 has also been the year of highest number of locals being recruited into Anti India armed groups, more than 165 locals have joined the militant ranks which analysts believe is due to the lack of political will on the Indian side to resolve the decades long conflict.

That number of Militants today stand at not more than 250, however, over half a million Indian troops camping in camps that dot this Himalayan region, are a constant reminder that the conflict is far from over.