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Three Kashmiris have been tortured to death while in army custody in Indian-occupied Kashmir (IOK), according to a report<\/a> from The Associated Press<\/em> (AP<\/em>) on Saturday.<\/p>\n The report stated that according to locals and residents, the army had arrested \u201cat least eight civilians\u201d a day ago for interrogation in the wake of a Thursday attack on two army vehicles in Poonch that killed four and injured three Indian soldiers.<\/p>\n \u201cLocals accused army personnel of torturing the three to death in a nearby military camp. The bodies were later handed to the local police who in turn contacted the families. Residents said the bodies bore marks of severe torture,\u201d the report stated.<\/p>\n According to the families, the other five were moved to an army hospital after they were \u201cseverely tortured\u201d.<\/p>\n The report said that according to local Mohammed Younis, soldiers had arrived at his Topa Peer village on Friday morning and held nine villagers, including two of his brothers and a cousin.<\/p>\n \u201cAn elderly man was let go, he said, but the others were ruthlessly beaten and electrocuted,\u201d the report said.<\/p>\n Younis said his relatives were also \u201cbadly hurt due to torture\u201d and were being treated in an army hospital.<\/p>\n The report added that videos<\/a> reportedly showing the \u201ctorture of detained civilians\u201d spread online hours after their detention and triggered \u201cwidespread anger\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cAuthorities cut off internet services on smart devices in Poonch and Rajouri on Saturday morning, a common tactic to dispel possible protests and discourage dissemination of the videos,\u201d the report said.<\/p>\n Lt Col Suneel Bartwal, an Indian army spokesman, said he had no \u201cinput\u201d about the circumstances surrounding the three deaths.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, the IOK government\u2019s Information and Public Relations Department said that after the deaths were reported, \u201cmedico-legal formalities were conducted and legal action in this matter has been initiated by the appropriate authority.\u201d<\/p>\n It added that the government had announced compensation for the deceased, as well as \u201ccompassionate appointments\u201d for their next of kin.<\/p>\n \u201cSenior police and civil officials visited the village and supervised the burials. Local officials said police would investigate the incident, in an attempt to pacify the villagers.<\/p>\n \u201cProtests erupted in Srinagar, the region\u2019s main city, with at least three pro-India Kashmiri political parties staging demonstrations against the killings,\u201d the report further said.<\/p>\n Former IOK chief minister Mehbooba Mufti expressed concern over the killings.<\/p>\n According to the Kashmir Media Service<\/em>, while talking to the media in Srinagar, she said Indian troops were committing the \u201cworst kind of state terrorism in the territory\u201d.<\/p>\n She said that the soldiers detained 15 people during the search operation, out of which three were \u201cbrutally tortured and martyred\u201d, while the remaining 12 people were seriously injured at the time and were in hospitals.<\/p>\n Mufti said \u201cheartbreaking videos\u201d had emerged in which Indian soldiers could reportedly be seen throwing young people down and putting chillies on their wounds.<\/p>\n She said IOK was turned into an open prison where thousands, including imams, lawyers and journalists, were put in jails and employees were being fired from their jobs.<\/p>\n The Indian army in July 2020 had said its soldiers killed three unidentified \u201cPakis\u00adtani terrorists\u201d in IOK\u2019s southern Shopian area. Police had said the July 18 encounter was a solo operation by the army.<\/p>\n About a month later, three families in Rajouri had identified the victims as their missing relatives using photographs of the bodies that circulated on social media. The families had filed a complaint with police, accusing soldiers of killing their relatives in a staged gunfight.<\/p>\n The families said the three men went to Shopian to work as labourers<\/a> and were last heard from on July 17.<\/p>\n