ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistan said on Tuesday it would bring the dispute with India over Kashmir to the International Court of Justice.
"Pakistan has decided to deal with the International Court of Justice on the Kashmir issue after considering all legal aspects," Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi said in televised remarks.
Qureshi said the issue would focus on human rights violations by India in Muslim-majority Kashmir. The decision of the court is only advisory unless the two countries agree in advance.
| Masked Indian soldiers on the streets of Srinagar (Getty Images) |
Skirmishes and killed
In the field, the Pakistani army said that two civilians were killed on Sunday in the Pakistani-administered Kashmir, and at least three Pakistani soldiers were killed in clashes last Thursday.
Meanwhile, Indian army sources said that one Indian soldier was killed and four other soldiers were injured after Pakistani troops opened fire on Indian border posts in Kashmir. He added that India responded to the attack and killed and wounded among the Pakistani soldiers.
Protests and stone-throwing were reported in Srinagar, the main city in Indian Kashmir, resulting in injuries to several people, officials said.
More than 100 local officials, activists and academics have been arrested in Kashmir since Indian authorities abolished self-rule on Aug. 5 and imposed a total security closure, but residents say many young men were detained by police after protests against India.
In an attempt to stop the police raids, residents of Sora district in Srinagar set up roadblocks and dug trenches on the roads leading to their communities.
"We remain very concerned about reports of ongoing arrests and restrictions on the population of the region," a State Department official told reporters in Washington. "We call for respect for individual rights and legal procedures."
She added that she conveyed these demands to the Indian government, and continued, "We recognize India's concern but we continue to call on them to seek as soon as possible to normalize the situation in the region."