Four cops martyred, 20 injured as AJK protest spirals

A statement issued on Sunday night by the office of AJK police chief Liaqat Ali Malik said four police personnel were martyred when demonstrators “attacked” CMH Rawalakot on Sunday. The statement maintained the men had been shot by firearms and shotguns, terming it outright “terrorism” and vowing not to compromise on the safety of citizens and public peace. Additionally, officials said that at least two people from among the protesters had lost their lives, while dozens were said to be injured. Locals fear that the toll could be much higher. The flow of information from AJK has been curtailed by the closure of mobile data services across the region. Tensions flared in Rawalakot over the death of a trader, who was allegedly shot during a confrontation with law-enforcers on Friday night. Initially, his family had ann­ounced his funeral would be held on Saturday, but they later changed their mind and brought the body back to the Combined Military Hospital (CMH), apparently for post-mortem examination, and deferred the funeral until Sunday. The body was shifted to the hospital’s mortuary but a post-mortem examination was not conducted. In the meantime, scores of people continued a sit-in outside CMH. According to witnesses, when a police party arrived to disperse the protesters, a charged group of demonstrators confronted them. Riot police then resorted to baton charge and lobbed tear gas shells to disperse the group. In response, the demonstrators pelted police with stones, but no one was hurt. The family of the deceased man, meanwhile, declared they