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India revokes Kashmir's special status: All the latest updates
Thousands arrested under controversial Public Safety Act and flown out of Kashmir as jails run out of capacity.
1 hour ago
Thousands arrested under controversial Public Safety Act and flown out of Kashmir as jails run out of capacity.
1 hour ago
The Indian government has revoked the special status of Indian-administered Kashmir in its constitution, the most far-reaching political move on the disputed region in nearly 70 years.
A presidential decree issued on August 5 revoked Article 370 of India's constitution that guaranteed special rights to the Muslim-majority state, including the right to its own constitution and autonomy to make laws on all matters, except defence, communications and foreign affairs.
In the lead-up to the move, India sent thousands of additional troops to the disputed region, imposed a crippling curfew, shut down telecommunications and internet, and arrested political leaders.
The move has worsened the already-heightened tensions with neighbouring Pakistan, which said it would downgrade its diplomatic relations with India.
Both India and Pakistan claim Kashmir in full but rule it in part. The nuclear-armed neighbours have fought two of their three wars over the disputed territory. A rebellion in Indian-administered Kashmir has been ongoing for three decades.
Here are the latest updates:
Sunday, August 18
India reimposes some curbs on movement, phones
Indian authorities have reimposed restrictions on movement in major parts of Srinagar after violent overnight clashes between residents and police in which dozens were injured, officials and witnesses said.
Two senior government officials told Reuters news agency that at least two dozen people were admitted to hospitals with pellet injuries.
They also reversed a decision to allow internet and mobile phone use in parts of the Jammu region, according to one official, amid concerns about the spread of rumours online.
4,000 arrested since autonomy stripped: Gov't sources
A magistrate speaking to AFP news agency on condition of anonymity said at least 4,000 people were arrested in Indian-administered Kashmir and held under the Public Safety Act (PSA), a controversial law that allows authorities to imprison someone for up to two years without charge or trial.
"Most of them were flown out of Kashmir because prisons here have run out of capacity," the magistrate said, adding that he had used a satellite phone allocated to him to collate the figures from colleagues across the Himalayan territory amid a communications blackout imposed by authorities.
Fascists control India's nuclear arsenal: Pakistan
Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan has urged the international community to take steps to secure India's nuclear arsenal after New Delhi hinted a shift in its "no first use" policy.
"The World must also seriously consider the safety & security of India's nuclear arsenal in the control of the fascist, racist Hindu Supremacist Modi Govt. This is an issue that impacts not just the region but the world," he said in a tweet.
India's Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Friday said while India had strictly adhered to the nuclear weapons doctrine of "no first use" policy, what would happen in future will depend on circumstances.
Saturday, August 17
Kashmir's key political leaders arrested since August 5
Indian authorities have carried out a major crackdown against political leaders in Indian-administered Kashmir and arrested high-profile figures that include three former chief ministers of the Muslim-majority state.
The arrests coincided with the abrogation of decades-old Article 370 of the Indian constitution that protected the demography of Jammu and Kashmir state and provided it a limited autonomy.
Read the full story here.
Heavy fire reported near LoC between India and Pakistan
An exchange of fire has been across the heavily-militarised Line of Control (LoC) between Indian-administered and Pakistan-administered Kashmir.
The incident took place in Nowshera town of the Rajouri district in the state of Jammu and Kashmir.
Indian defence spokesman Colonel Aman Anand said that one soldier was killed allegedly by Pakistan forces. Pakistan has yet to comment on this latest development.
Pakistan announces Kashmir desk at foreign ministry, embassies
Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi has said the country was establishing a Kashmir desk at the ministry and at its embassies in foreign capitals.
He said this was decided to "lobby for Kashmiris and their right to self-determination" and "in order to carry out effective communication on the matter".
Khan welcomes first UN session on Kashmir in decades
Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan welcomed the UN Security Council meeting that was held in New York on Friday.
He hailed the session as a "reaffirmation" of 11 previous UNSC resolutions on Kashmir, that gaurantees Kashmiris the right to self-determination.
India to ease restrictions in parts of Kashmir
Local police in the Jammu and Kashmir state said on Saturday that 17 out of 100 telephone exchanges were restored in the Kashmir Valley.
According to Al Jazeera correspondent Anchal Vohra, most of the landline telephone services in Jammu had been restored. Restrictions were tougher in Kashmir, where India's clampdown continues to be far more constraining.
Read full story here.
Friday, August 16
How a red dot symbolised Kashmir resistance
The famous red dot that marks the story of Indian-administered Kashmir on social media came much before India scrapped the Muslim-majority region of its special status.
The decision to revoke Article 370 of India's constitution on August 5 was preceded by a heavy military build-up in the Himalayan valley, followed by a crippling lockdown now in its 12th day, and arrests of hundreds of political leaders and activists.
Read the full story here.
Kashmir on lockdown, but Modi touts its investment potential
A few days after Jammu and Kashmir's special status was eradicated, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi claimed that the now-abolished Article 370 of India's constitution - the provision that had guaranteed special rights to the Muslim-majority region - had also hampered its economic development.
"There must be investment and job opportunities in Jammu and Kashmir," Modi told CNN-News 18. "No one goes there to invest."
Read the full story here.
Trump urges India, Pakistan to reduce tensions
US President Donald Trump told Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan that it was important India and Pakistan reduce tensions in Jammu and Kashmir through "bilateral dialogue," the White House said in a statement.
White House spokesperson Hogan Gidley said the two leaders in a telephone call also discussed building the growing relationship between the United States and Pakistan, citing momentum created during their recent meeting at the White House.
India UN envoy: Kashmir decision internal matter
India's ambassador to the United Nations criticised international interference over Kashmir, after the Security Council held its first formal meeting on the disputed region in decades.
"We don't need international busybodies to try to tell us how to run our lives," Syed Akbaruddin told reporters in New York, adding that India's decision was an internal matter.
"If there are issues, they will be discussed, they will be addressed by our courts," he said.
Read the full story here.
Pakistan UN envoy: Voice of Kashmiri people has been heard
Pakistan's ambassador to the UN said people in Indian-administered Kashmir "are not alone", adding that they "may be locked up ... but their voices were heard today".
Maleeha Lodhi was speaking to reporters after the Security Council met behind closed doors to discuss the situation in Kashmir for the first time in decades. She said that the meeting was called 72 hours after Pakistan's Foreign Minister wrote a letter requesting it in the wake of India's move.
"We are grateful to China in also joining us and calling this meeting," she said.
"The voice of the Kashmiri people, the voice of the people of occupied Kashmir has been heard today in the highest diplomatic forum of the world.
"They are not alone ... their plight, their hardship, their pain, their suffering, their occupation and the consequences of that occupation has been heard in the UNSC."
Lodhi said that the very fact this meeting had taken place is "testimony to the fact that this is an internationally recognised dispute".
Chinese UN envoy: Kashmir situation 'very tense, very dangerous'
The Chinese ambassador to the UN said the Security Council feared that the situation in Kashmir might worsen.
Speaking to reporters after the council wrapped up the closed-door meeting in New York, Zhang Jun said the situation in Kashmir is "already very tense and very dangerous".
He added that the members of the council generally feel India and Pakistan should both refrain from unilateral action over Kashmir.
UN Security Council meets to discuss Kashmir
The UN Security Council met behind closed doors to discuss the situation in Kashmir for the first time in decades at the request of China and Pakistan.
The UN's most powerful body was being briefed morning by Assistant Secretary-General Oscar Fernandez-Taranco and General Carlos Humberto Loitey, the UN military adviser.
UN officials said the council session may be its first on Kashmir since the late 1990s, or possibly since the 1971 India-Pakistan war.
Russia's deputy UN ambassador, Dmitry Polyansky, told reporters as he headed into the meeting that Moscow was concerned about the latest developments, but he said it was "a bilateral issue".
Amnesty International Secretary-General Kumi Naidoo said in a statement that council members "need to remember that their mandate is to protect international peace and security - and they should seek to resolve the situation in a way that puts the human rights of the people in this troubled region at its centre."
Pakistan: Khan and Trump discuss Kashmir
Prime Minister Khan, has held a telephone conversation with Trump in which the two leaders discussed the events in Kashmir.
Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said Khan shared his concern with Trump that the situation in Kashmir posed a danger to the region.
He said the conversation was part of the prime minister's outreach to world leaders about the developments in Kashmir.
There was no information about Trump's comments.
Candlelight vigil voices solidarity with Kashmir
Scores of Pakistanis living in Turkey gathered outside the Pakistan Embassy in Ankara on Thursday evening for a candlelight vigil expressing their solidarity with the people of Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir.
With candles and posters in their hands, they were joined by many Turks, who said they had come to express support for the Kashmiri population.
India says restoring phone lines in Kashmir
India will begin restoring phone lines in Kashmir on Friday evening, a top official said, after a 12-day blackout following the stripping of the region's autonomy.
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Secretary BVR Subrahmanyam did not make clear, however, whether mobile phones and internet connections would also be reinstated in the Muslim-majority northern region.
"You will see a gradual restoration (of telephone lines) from tonight and tomorrow onwards. You will find a lot of Srinagar functioning tomorrow morning," Subrahmanyam said, referring to the main city in the restive Kashmir Valley.
"Exchange by exchange they will be switching it on. Over the weekend you will have most of these lines functioning most probably," he told reporters.
He said the easing would "(keep) in mind the constant threat posed by terrorist organisations in using mobile connectivity to organised terrorist actions."
'Expectations high' ahead of UNSC meeting
The first special UN Security Council session on Kashmir will take place today after 54 years.
In Muzaffarabad, capital of Pakistan-administered Kashmir, Al Jazeera's Osama Bin Javaid, said "expectations are really high" ahead of the session.
"The people are calling on the UN and the UNSC members to listen to the plight of the Kashmiris," said Javaid.
The UNSC move is being hailed as a diplomatic victory by Pakistan, but the government was wary of any "concrete steps to be taken to stop India or roll back whats its done in Kashmir".
Red dot symbolising Kashmiri resistance
While the Kashmir region remains locked down, Kashmiri diaspora is using social media to organise protests and mobilise opinion.
Amid the crisis, Stand With Kashmir, a grassroots advocacy group in the United States, posted a red dot on its Instagram account they had set up only months ago.
"We decided to use it [the red dot] as a campaign [to] try to at least do some kind of an initial social media organising to make people aware."
Read more here.
Clampdown to be eased in 'next few days'
India will lift restrictions on people's movements and communication links in Kashmir in the next few days, the federal government told the Supreme Court on Friday.
The court was hearing a petition by a newspaper editor seeking restoration of telephone and internet services snapped this month, just before the government withdrew Kashmir's special status, to prevent protests.
The restrictions would be lifted in the "next few days", the government lawyer, Tushar Mehta, said. "The ground situation is being reviewed daily and the Supreme Court must trust the security agencies."
Indian troops' firing 'kills another Pakistani soldier'
Pakistan's army said Indian troops fired across the Line of Control in the disputed Kashmir region, killing another soldier and bringing the death toll to six in less than 24 hours.
Army spokesman Major General Asif Ghafoor in a tweet Friday said "another brave son of soil lost his life in the line of duty" in Buttal town.
On Thursday, Pakistan's army said at least three of its soldiers and five Indian soldiers were killed after a cross-border exchange of fire, prompting a denial by New Delhi that there were fatalities among its forces.
Thursday, August 15
Indian troops detain Kashmiri journalist
Indian troops detained a Kashmiri reporter working for a local newspaper in an overnight raid on his house in Southern Pulwama district, his family said.
Irfan Ahmad Malik, 28, works for Greater Kashmir, the largest daily newspaper in the Kashmir valley. It was not immediately clear why he had been detained.
More than 500 local leaders and activists have been detained in the past 12 days of the crackdown.
Thousands demonstrate in London against India move
Several thousand people protested outside the Indian embassy in London against the country's move to strip the Indian-controlled part of Kashmir of its autonomy.
The protesters in the United Kingdom's capital held up signs reading "Kashmir is bleeding" and waved Kashmiri and Pakistani flags. Police separated them from a smaller pro-India counter-demonstration.
Indian army: 'No casualties'
An Indian army spokesperson has denied the Pakistani army's statement that five Indian soldiers were killed in a cross-border exchange of fire in the disputed region of Kashmir.
"No casualties. This assertion is wrong," the spokesperson was quoted as saying by Reuters news agency.
In a statement quoted by news agencies, the Indian army said that at about 7am, Pakistan violated a ceasefire between the two nations in the heavily militarised LoC.
Read the full story.
Fire across LoC 'kills 3 Pakistani, 5 Indian troops'
At least three Pakistani soldiers and five Indian troops have been killed after an exchange of fire across the Line of Control in the disputed region of Kashmir, Pakistan's army has said.
Major General Asif Ghafoor, the chief spokesman of the Pakistan Armed Forces, said in a Twitter post on Thursday that Indian forces had increased firing along the contested border.
Read the full story.
'Black Day' over Kashmir
Pakistan is observing a 'Black Day' to coincide with India's independence day celebrations.
Newspaper issues carried black borders and politicians, including Prime Minister Imran Khan, replaced their social media pictures with black squares. Flags on government buildings flew at half-mast.
Nearly a 1,000 supporters of Hizbul Mujahideen rebel group marched through Muzaffarabad, capital of Pakistan-administered Kashmir, holding black flags and shouting anti-India slogans.
UN 'likely' to discuss Kashmir issue on Friday
The UN Security Council (UNSC) is expected to discuss the Kashmir issue on Friday, Radio Pakistan reported, citing diplomatic sources.
Pakistan's Geo News also reported the news quoting UNSC president Joanna Wronecka as saying: "The UNSC will discuss the Jammu and Kashmir situation behind closed doors most likely on August 16."
Modi must lift Kashmir communications blackout: Amnesty
Amnesty International has asked Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to lift the communications blackout and engage with the people of Jammu and Kashmir.
"It is a paradox that as India celebrates its 73rd independence day today, the people of Jammu and Kashmir continue to be subjected to a lockdown for the past 10 days," the rights group said in a statement.
Kashmir protest
A woman shouts slogans during a protest following restrictions in Srinagar [Danish Ismail/Reuters]
Modi defends move to revoke Kashmir's special status
Modi has defended his decision to revoke Kashmir's special status, saying the move is to ensure the idea of "one nation, one constitution", which he said will foster growth in the troubled region, at the 73rd-anniversary celebration of Indian independence in New Delhi.
"We don't believe in delaying solving problems, we also don't let problems fester," Modi said, saying two-thirds of both houses of Indian parliament approved the plan.
Read the full story.
Wednesday, August 14
How are Kashmiris coping under lockdown?
Millions in Indian-administered Kashmir are living under curfew after the government revoked the state's semi-autonomy.
Thousands of troops were sent to the Muslim-majority region, while telephone lines and internet connections are blocked.
Al Jazeera's The Stream looks at what lies in store for the people of Kashmir amid the ongoing lockdown.
Watch the special episode here.
Indian activists release report after Kashmir visit
A group of Indian activists, economists, writers and members of leftist organisations presented their observations of the situation in Kashmir in the capital New Delhi on Wednesday after returning from a five-day trip to the disputed region.
Kavita Krishnan, a left-wing activist, said the situation is "absolutely not normal," contrary to reports by several Indian news broadcasters.
Read the full story.
Pakistan protests killing of villager in Kashmir
Pakistan's foreign ministry said it has summoned an Indian diplomat to protest the killing of a civilian by Indian fire in disputed Kashmir.
The ministry said in a statement that a 38-year-old villager was killed on Tuesday by an "unprovoked cease-fire violation by Indian troops on the Pakistani side of Kashmir."
Restrictions in Jammu region lifted: Report
Restrictions in the Jammu region of Indian-administered Kashmir have been "completely removed", Indian news agency PTI said, quoting a senior police official.
"Restrictions imposed in Jammu have been completely removed and schools and other establishments there are functioning. Restrictions will continue in some places of Kashmir for some time," Additional Director General Munir Khan said, according to PTI.
India's Kashmir move 'strategic blunder by Modi' India's move of revoking Article 370 and imposing a lockdown in Kashmir is a strategic blunder by Indian PM Narendra Modi, his Pakistani counterpart Imran Khan has said while addressing legislators in Pakistan-administered Kashmir.
Khan visited Muzaffarabad on Pakistan's independence day as he reaffirmed his support to the Kashmiri people in their struggle for self-determination amid heightened tensions with neighbouring India.
Read more here.
Imran Khan's speech at state assembly in Muzaffarabad
Kashmir leader Shah Faesal 'arrested at New Delhi airport'
Shah Faesal, a former bureaucrat who launched a political party in Indian-administered Kashmir earlier this year, has been arrested at New Delhi airport and sent back to Srinagar, according to Indian media reports.
On Tuesday, Faesal had tweeted that Kashmir "will need a long, sustained, non-violent" movement for the restoration of the Muslim-majority region's special status under the Indian constitution.
Imran Khan visits Pakistan-administered Kashmir
Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan has visited Pakistan-administered Kashmir as he reiterated his support to the Kashmiri people living in the Indian-administered part of the divided region.
Khan's visit to Muzzaffarad, the capital of Pakistan-administered Kashmir, to mark the country's independence day came more than a week after New Delhi's decision to downgrade Kashmir's status.
Read more here.
Pakistan observes 'Kashmir Solidarity Day'
Pakistan is observing its 72nd independence day in solidarity with the people of Kashmir this year.
While addressing a flag-hoisting ceremony in the capital, Islamabad, President Arif Alvi said that Pakistan has always stood by Kashmiris and would continue to do so, local media Dawn reported.
Kashmir curfew to be eased after Thursday: Governor
Restrictions on freedom of movement in Indian-administered Kashmir will be eased after India's independence day on Thursday, the state governor said; phone lines and the internet will remain cut off.
Satya Pal Malik told the Times of India that communications would remain blocked.
"In a week or 10 days, everything will be all right and we will gradually open lines of communication," Malik told the newspaper in an interview.
Tuesday, August 13
Amnesty condemns India court's support for crackdown
Amnesty International India condemned a decision by India's Supreme Court to allow New Delhi to continue a security crackdown and communications blackout in Indian-administered Kashmir.
Amnesty also urged New Delhi to ease restrictions and expressed "deep concern" over people's right to freedom of movement, expression and opinion, as well as the detention of political leaders and activists, and "the impairment of the press to freely report on the current developments and act as a bridge for the voices from the region".
Pakistan calls on UNSC to address India's Kashmir move
The Pakistani government asked the UN Security Council to meet over India's decision revoking Indian-administered Kashmir's special status.
"Pakistan will not provoke a conflict. But India should not mistake our restraint for weakness," Pakistan's Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi wrote in a letter to the council seen by Reuters news agency.
US mediation between India and Pakistan on Kashmir (2:23)
It was not immediately clear how the 15-member council would respond to the request. Polish Foreign Minister Jacek Czaputowicz told reporters at the UN that the council "will discuss that issue and take a proper decision".
Poland holds the presidency of the council for August.
Kashmir: Srinagar a maze of razor wires and steel barriers
The main city in Indian-administered Kashmir has turned into a vast maze of razor wire coils and steel barricades as drones and helicopters hover overhead.
Although the four million residents of the Kashmir Valley - where an armed conflict has simmered for decades - are used to blockades, they say the current one is something they have never seen before.
"The entire Srinagar city has been knitted in razor wire to seek our silence and obedience," resident Zameer Ahmed told The Associated Press news agency.
Read more here.
India Supreme Court says Kashmir crackdown to continue
India's Supreme Court, in reviewing a petition for the immediate withdrawal of severe government restrictions in Kashmir, said the security crackdown and communications blackout should continue because the government needed more time to tackle the "sensitive" situation.
Attorney General KK Venugopal said: "We are reviewing the situation and lifting restrictions step by step," in the Supreme Court, according to legal reporting website Bar&Bench.
Kashmir security lockdown enters 9th day
An unprecedented security lockdown has kept people in Indian-administered Kashmir indoors for a ninth day, with residents running short of essentials under a near-constant curfew and communications blackout.
The lockdown is expected to last at least through Thursday, India's independence day.
Rights activists write open letter to Modi
An open letter signed by 69 human rights activists and organisations, lawyers, journalists and academics, addressed to India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi raised concerns over the human rights violations in Indian-administered Kashmir.
The letter called on Modi to revoke the curfew, reinstate communication, release all those arbitrarily detained over the last few days, and restore the status of Jammu and Kashmir under Article 370 of India's constitution, which granted the Muslim-majority state considerable autonomy.
Read more here.
Kashmir protests overshadow Eid festivities
Hundreds of protesters defied a security lockdown in Indian-administered Kashmir on the first day of the Eid al-Adha holiday, as they marched on the streets of capital, Srinagar.
The protests lasted for a few hours after Eid prayers, before demonstrators dispersed peacefully.
"For Muslims, there are two days which are festive and sacred, and that's Eid ... but this is not our Eid. We are just mourning in Kashmir," a resident told Al Jazeera.
Kashmir's protest against India overshadows Eid festivities
Trump's Kashmir mediation offer 'not on table anymore': Report
US President Donald Trump's offer of mediation on the Kashmir issue between India and Pakistan is "not on the table anymore," Indian media reports quoting India's ambassador to the United States said.
"President Trump has made it very clear that his offer to mediate on Jammu and Kashmir is dependent on both India and Pakistan accepting it. Since India has not accepted the offer of mediation, he has made it clear that this is not on the table anymore," Harsh Vardhan Shringla told a US-based news channel.
India calls the part of Kashmir it administers its "internal affair" and rejects any mediation, while Pakistan, which also claims the Himalayan region in full, wants world powers to resolve the issue.
Monday, August 12
Priyanka Chopra accused of 'encouraging nuclear war'
Indian actress Priyanka Chopra has been branded a hypocrite over a tweet she posted in February amid escalating tensions between neighbours India and Pakistan.
The incident, which was widely shared online, took place during a cosmetics event on Saturday in the US city of Los Angeles when audience member Ayesha Malik accused Chopra of "encouraging nuclear war against Pakistan".
Read more here.
Kashmiris fear escalating tension
People living in the disputed region of Kashmire have said they are afraid of escalating tension.
The disputed region is one of the world's most dangerous flashpoints between nuclear-armed rivals, Pakistan and India.
Al Jazeera's Osama Bin Javaid reports from the line of control in Pakistan-administered Kashmir.
Kashmiris fear escalating tension: 'We live in danger'
HRW: Kashmir lockdown not a sustainable solution
US-based group Human Rights Watch (HRW) has expressed concern over the continued lockdown and communications blackout in Indian-administered Kashmir.
"There has to be a rights respecting-approach to handle the situation in Kashmir, where people are able to speak to their loved ones, have access to communication, essential supplies and hospitals, but we are seeing none of that," Meenakshi Ganguly, HRW's South Asia director, told Al Jazeera from Mumbai.
"This is not a sustainable solution. If the Indian government has decided to impose restrictions ... they should ensure the Kashmiris are able to live their lives normally," she added.
Activists in India mark Eid in solidarity with Kashmir
Almost 300 Kashmiris and activists gathered in India's capital, New Delhi, to mark the Eid al-Adha celebration as Indian-administered Kashmir remains under lockdown for a week.
"I am here to express my solidarity with the people of Kashmir who have not been able to go home and are not able to talk to their parents because there is a total clampdown on communication," said activist Shabnam Hashmi. "We are not celebrating Eid today."
Eid away from home
People distribute food at an Eid event held in solidarity with Kashmiris in New Delhi [Al Jazeera]
Eid away from home
An 'Eid away from home' event took place at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi for Kashmiri students unable to travel home and spend the holiday with their family [Al Jazeera]
Pakistanis dedicate Eid prayers to Kashmir
The Pakistani government has called for the Eid al-Adha celebration to be observed in a "simple manner" this year, to express solidarity with Kashmiris living on the Indian side of the divided region.
Pakistan's Minister of Foreign Affairs Shah Mahmood Qureshi travelled to Muzaffarabad, the capital of Pakistan-administered Kashmir, to offer Eid prayers at a mosque there.
In the southern city of Karachi, prayers were dedicated to Kashmiris in India. "We are together with our Kashmiri brothers," said resident Mohammad Adnan.
"We share their pain and grief. Today, special prayers were offered for them inside the mosque."
Kashmir crisis
Kashmiri men wait before Eid-al-Adha prayers in Srinagar [Danish Siddiqui/Reuters]
Amid 'Eid siege', Kashmiris try to reach loved ones
On the lawn of the district commissioner's office in Srinagar, the main city of Indian-administered Kashmir, residents circle a table, hoping their turn will come soon.
With phone and internet usage cut off during a week-long lockdown imposed by the Indian government, authorities are allowing locals to use a mobile phone to briefly speak to their loved ones outside the Muslim-majority state.
Read more here.
Indian-administered Kashmir remains cut off during Eid Al-Adha (2:35)
India imposes tighter curbs to prevent Eid protests
Indian troops imposed tight restrictions on mosques across Kashmir for the Eid al-Adha celebration, fearing anti-government protests over the stripping of the Muslim-majority region's autonomy, according to residents.
The Himalayan region's biggest mosque, the Jama Masjid, was ordered to be closed and people were only allowed to pray in smaller local mosques so that no big crowds could gather, witnesses said.
All phone lines and the internet remained cut off for an eighth day on Monday.
Eid in Kashmir
Kashmiris offer Eid al-Adha prayers at a mosque during restrictions in Srinagar [Danish Siddiqui/Reuters]
India wants Davis Cup tie moved from Pakistan
India has asked the International Tennis Federation to move their upcoming Davis Cup tie from Pakistan to a neutral venue due to escalating political tensions between the two nations.
The Indian team is scheduled to be in Pakistan's capital, Islamabad, for the Asia/Oceania zone Group I tie to be held on September 14 and 15.
"We have asked ITF for a neutral venue because the situation is a bit unpredictable," All India Tennis Association (AITA) president Praveen Mahajan told AFP on Sunday.
"I believe it is a reasonable request because of the current state of affairs."
Wife of Kashmir leader appeals for UN intervention
Mushaal Hussein Mullick, the wife of Yasin Malik, a leading Kashmiri rebel leader held by India, has appealed to the world to "wake up" and intervene as the situation in the disputed territory remains tense.
Mullick told British broadcaster Sky News that "time is running short", and that her husband's "only hope is that the world will come forward".
Yasin Malik used to head pro-independence group the Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF), which was banned in March as part of India's crackdown on separatist groups.
Malik was arrested a month later and is being held at Tihar prison in New Delhi. "He is so weak and doctors ... they've all said that he's going to die like this," his wife said.
Sunday, August 11
Pakistan's foreign minister attacks India over Kashmir move
Pakistan's foreign minister has strongly criticised the Indian government for its revocation of Kashmir's autonomous status.
In an exclusive interview with Al Jazeera in Muzaffarabad, Qureshi said: "Pakistan is watching the situation carefully, and so is the world."
"We are concerned about the genocide that we feel can take place, or perhaps is taking place right now, because we have no idea what's going on in the Indian-occupied Kashmir right now," he argued.
"When they lifted the curfew for a few hours we saw thousands of people protesting in the streets, so it's an evolving situation."
Watch the interview at the video below.
Pakistan foreign minister discusses India and Kashmir (13:05)
India's Kashmir move 'inspired by Nazi ideology': Khan
Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan has said India's decision to scrap the special status of Kashmir was inspired by the "Nazi ideology".
"The curfew, crackdown and impending genocide of Kashmiris in IOK [India-Occupied Kashmir as Islamabad refers to Indian-administered Kashmir] is unfolding exactly [according] to RSS ideology inspired by Nazi ideology," Khan tweeted.
Pakistan has downgraded its diplomatic relations and suspended bilateral trade over New Delhi's decision to revoke Article 370 of the Indian constitution and divide the Muslim-majority state into two "union territories".
India eases restrictions for Eid al-Adha celebration
Authorities in Indian-administered Kashmir said they have eased restrictions in most parts of the main city of Srinagar ahead of the Islamic celebration of Eid al-Adha.
In a tweet, local magistrate Shahid Choudhary said more than 250 ATMs have been made functional and bank branches opened for people to withdraw money before the celebration.
There was no immediate independent confirmation of reports by authorities that people were visiting shopping areas for Eid purchases as all communications and the internet remain cut off for a seventh day.
Kashmiris fear escalating tension: 'We live in danger' (2:48)
Opinion: Kashmiri Pandits must reimagine idea of return
The dream of Kashmiri Pandits' return to their homeland in the Kashmir Valley has surfaced once again with the Indian government's stealthy abrogation on August 5 of Article 370, the constitutional provision that has secured the autonomous status of Jammu and Kashmir state since India's independence in 1947.
With the associated revocation of Article 35 A, which had allowed the state to define permanent residency, the doors were effectively thrown open for all Indians to buy land in Kashmir.
Across news coverage, after the decision was made, many Kashmiri Pandits - native Brahmin Hindus of the Kashmir Valley - who had left their homes in Kashmir in the 1990s, were seen celebrating. They were hopeful that they could now return "on their own terms".
Read more here.
Saturday, August 10
With China's support, Pakistan to go to Security Council
China has pledged its "full support" for Islamabad's plan to take up India's actions in Kashmir at the United Nations Security Council, according to Pakistan's foreign minister.
"I have shared with China that the Pakistan government has decided to take this issue to UN Security Council. We will be needing China's help there," Shah Mahmood Qureshi told a news conference in Beijing.
"China has assured full support to Pakistan," he added.
Qureshi said he planned to approach Indonesia and Poland, both non-permanent members of the 15-strong Security Council, for their support.
Iran urges India, Pakistan to avoid 'hasty' Kashmir decision
The chief of staff of Iran's armed forces cautioned Pakistan and India to avoid any "hasty decisions" in Kashmir, the semi-official Fars news agency reported.
Retweeted d-atis
