SRINAGAR: The Indian army lost a captain in clashes with Kashmiri fighters in occupied Kashmir on Wednesday.

The army, in a post on social media platform X, offered its “deepest condolences” over the death of the officer.

The skirmish is the latest in a string of clashes in the Hindu-dominated Jammu region this year. Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh called a meeting with army and intelligence chiefs on Wednesday after the latest clashes in Jammu, which had been relatively quiet for the past two decades.

Thousands of additional troops, drones and sniffer dogs have been deployed in the mountainous terrain, where new army posts are being set up.

The fighting comes as the region prepares for the expected announcement of the first local assembly elections in a decade.

Published in Dawn, August 15th, 2024