The Indian army has admitted that its troops made a mistake in a recent shooting that killed two teenagers in Indian-administered Kashmir. "We take responsibility for the death of the two boys in Kashmir," the chief of the army's northern command, Lieutenant General D.S. Hooda, said in a televised press conference on Friday. The comments came after army soldiers opened fire on a car on the outskirts of the state capital of Srinagar on November 3, killing two youngsters and critically wounding another. "We admit a mistake was made... there was some information about a white car with terrorists. Obviously, the identity was mistaken in this case," Hooda added. The army will launch an investigation into the deaths with "the highest standard of transparency," he said. On Thursday, human rights groups called for the abrogation of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act, which sanctions the Indian army to employ excessive and unbridled force in the disputed region of Kashmir. The act also allows the Indian forces to kill, arrest or destroy property on mere suspicion. Kashmir lies at the heart of more than 66 years of animosity between India and Pakistan. Both neighbors claim the region in full but each has partial control over it. Over the past 25 years, people in Kashmir have been engaged in pro-independence battles with the Indian government. New Delhi’s crackdown on the protests has left tens of thousands dead in the Muslim-dominated region.
LINK: https://www.ansarpress.com/english/2878
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