JKJAAC condemns deaths during Rawalakot security operation and calls for immediate civilian protection and an independent investigation
Three named deaths independently corroborated; at least 18 people reported injured; allegations concerning firearms, unmanned aircraft and damage to a civilian home require urgent forensic scrutiny
11/5/20264 min read
The Jammu Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee (JKJAAC) strongly condemns the deaths and injuries reported during the pre-dawn security operation affecting the peaceful sit-ins at Farooq-e-Azam Chowk and the Matiyalmera bus terminal in Rawalakot on 5 November 2026.
The Jammu Kashmir Human Rights Observatory (JKHRO) has independently corroborated the deaths of three named people and has received an initial list of 18 people reported injured, subject to continuing medical and official verification. The causes, sequence of events and responsibility have not yet been independently determined. Later public reports have cited higher casualty figures, but those additional reports remain under verification.
IMMEDIATE PRIORITY
JKJAAC calls for an immediate end to any unlawful or disproportionate use of force, unobstructed access for ambulances and medical teams, protection of civilians and peaceful participants, preservation of all evidence, and a prompt independent investigation applying the same evidential standard to the conduct of every party.
Three deaths corroborated and injuries under verification
JKHRO has independently corroborated the deaths of Ehtisham Younis, aged 30; Atif Jirjees, reported aged 33–35, whose surname and documentary identity remain under verification; and Adil Rashid, aged 32. JKHRO had not obtained a complete official casualty statement, death certificates, post-mortem reports or all relevant hospital records at the publication cut-off.
Local sources supplied an initial list of 18 people reported injured. Their medical status remains under verification. JKJAAC urges hospitals and the authorities to publish a reconciled casualty register and to ensure treatment without obstruction, intimidation or discrimination.
Peaceful sit-ins and unresolved agreements
JKJAAC supporters have maintained peaceful sit-ins in Rawalakot since 10 June 2026 after the Long March was prevented from proceeding towards Muzaffarabad. The movement chose to remain at fixed locations to avoid confrontation and further loss of life while seeking implementation of commitments made by the AJK Government and the Government of Pakistan.
“For months, people remained at these sit-ins peacefully because they wanted dialogue and implementation, not confrontation,” the JKJAAC spokesperson said. “The authorities must now protect life, permit medical access and answer the public’s demands through meaningful and authorised negotiations.”
Competing accounts require independent investigation
JKJAAC representatives allege that security personnel used firearms, unmanned aircraft and heavy or explosive force against protesters and a nearby civilian residence. Police have reportedly stated that armed persons fired on law-enforcement personnel during an operation to remove barricades and restore access.
JKJAAC rejects collective attribution of alleged armed conduct to the movement and reiterates that it is an independent, peaceful civil-rights movement with no organisational, operational or financial link to any armed individual, armed group, militia or violent organisation. JKJAAC condemns terrorism and violent extremism and pursues its objectives exclusively through peaceful, democratic, lawful and non-violent means.
The competing accounts must be tested independently. Any credible allegation against an individual should be investigated through individual evidence and due process. It must not be used to justify indiscriminate force against peaceful participants, bystanders or nearby homes.
Reported fire at a civilian residence
Serious allegations concern a fire affecting a residential property in Matiyalmera during the operation. JKHRO has corroborated the location, date and ownership of the property, but the available imagery does not establish the cause of the fire, the weapon or munition involved, or the identity of any responsible actor.
JKJAAC calls for independent forensic examination of the scene and any recovered objects. Claims concerning drones, explosive munitions or heavy weapons should not be treated as established fact until flight logs, inventories, remnants, imagery, metadata and specialist analysis have been examined.
Evidence that must be preserved
JKJAAC calls for the immediate preservation and disclosure to an independent investigation of:
· deployment orders, duty rosters, operational plans and command communications;
· weapons and ammunition issue and discharge logs;
· unmanned-aircraft inventories, operators, tasking records and flight logs;
· police radio records, CCTV and original video files with metadata;
· hospital, ambulance, mortuary, post-mortem and death-registration records;
· ballistic, explosive-residue, fire-service and property-inspection evidence;
· records concerning injuries to police or other personnel and any alleged firing at law-enforcement officers; and
· statements from families, protesters, police, medical workers and independent witnesses.
Any investigation must be institutionally independent of units or officials potentially implicated and must examine both operational and command responsibility.
UN human-rights concerns require a substantive response
JKJAAC recalls the joint communication issued to Pakistan by six United Nations human-rights mandates, AL PAK 4/2026, dated 4 September 2026. That communication raised concerns about the factual and legal basis of JKJAAC’s proscription and about reported unlawful killings, excessive force, arbitrary detention and restrictions on fundamental freedoms.
“The concerns raised by UN experts cannot be answered through further force or general denials,” the spokesperson said. “The authorities should permit independent scrutiny, respond with evidence and ensure that people can exercise their rights without fear of violence, detention or reprisals.”
JKJAAC’s immediate demands
· An immediate end to attacks or excessive force against peaceful assemblies, together with protection for protesters, residents, medical workers and journalists.
· Unobstructed ambulance, hospital and emergency-treatment access for every injured person.
· A prompt, independent, impartial and transparent investigation into all deaths, injuries, alleged firing at police, reported use of unmanned aircraft or explosive force, and damage to civilian property.
· Preservation of digital, physical, medical and operational evidence under a documented chain of custody.
· Publication of reconciled official lists of the dead, injured, detained, transferred and missing.
· Unrestricted access for independent media, lawyers, recognised human-rights organisations and relevant UN mechanisms.
· Protection for families, witnesses, doctors, journalists, lawyers and human-rights defenders from retaliation.
· Lawful determination of JKJAAC’s pending proscription-review application and release or court production of persons detained solely for peaceful activity.
· Immediate resumption of authorised negotiations and implementation of outstanding commitments under the four agreements through a public timetable and transparent monitoring mechanism.
JKJAAC reaffirm its commitment to a peaceful civil rights movement or more than three years, the people have pursued their demands through peaceful civic action. Since 10 June, they have maintained fixed sit-ins to avoid confrontation while seeking implementation of commitments already made. The authorities must protect life, establish the facts independently, ensure justice for every civilian and public official affected, and return immediately to meaningful negotiations
© 2026 Jammu Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee. All rights reserved.
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