Two youths killed by Indian forces in occupied Kashmir

Indian government has deployed forces across occupied Kashmir as residents observe Black Day. 

Indian troops killed two Kashmiri youths in the Khonmoh area of Srinagar, Kashmir Media Service (KMS) said on Saturday.

Clashes between Indian police and residents of the area erupted in the aftermath of the killings, when Indian police used force to disperse demonstrators who had come out on the streets to protest.

The killings took place on India's Republic Day, which is observed as Black Day by residents of Indian-occupied Kashmir and Azad Jammu and Kashmir.

The call to observe India's Republic Day as Black Day was given by the Joint Resistance Leadership (JRL), that is led by Syed Ali Gillani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Mohammad Yasin Malik, the KMS said. The JRL leaders said in a statement that India had "no justification" to observe Republic Day in held Kashmir as the territory had been "illegally occupied" against the wishes of Kashmiri people.

Kashmiri leaders, including Syed Ali Gilani, Muhammad Ashraf Sehrai, Muhammad Yasin Malik, Hilal Ahmed, Javaid Ahmed Mir, Zafar Akbar Butt, Abdur Rasheed Lone, Mushtaq Ajmal and Molvi Bashir Irfani, have been placed under house arrest or taken into custody and heavy contingents of Indian police have been deployed across occupied Kashmir in order to deter residents from staging anti-India protests.

All roads leading to the Bakhshi Stadium, the main venue of official function in Srinagar, have also been barricaded. Mobile services have also been suspended across India-occupied Kashmir.