JKHRO corroborates three deaths in Rawalakot and calls for an independent investigation
JKHRO has independently corroborated three deaths in Rawalakot, in Pakistan-administered Jammu and Kashmir, on 5 November 2026. Local sources reported 18 people injured. JKHRO calls for an independent investigation into the deaths and a house fire in Matiyalmera, and urges the authorities to preserve evidence and ensure safe access for medical teams.
The Jammu Kashmir Human Rights Observatory (JKHRO) calls for an independent investigation into the deaths of three people in Rawalakot, in Pakistan-administered Jammu and Kashmir, on 5 November 2026. Local sources also supplied the names of 18 people reported injured. JKHRO urges the authorities to protect residents and give ambulances and medical teams unobstructed access to the wounded.
In its 5 November situation update, JKHRO independently corroborated the three deaths through multiple local sources. Those who died were Ehtisham Younis, 30, of Chamba Nar; Atif, reported to be aged 33–35, also of Chamba Nar; and Adil Rashid, 32, of Mang Mor, Chehrh. The report provisionally records Atif’s surname as Jirjees, pending documentary confirmation. JKHRO extends its condolences to their families.
The report reflects information available by 8.15 pm Pakistan Standard Time on 5 November. At that point, JKHRO was still seeking hospital and post-mortem records to establish how the three people died and medical records to verify the reported injuries. Later reports of additional deaths and injuries remained unverified in this update.
JKHRO is also calling for a forensic examination of a fire at a home in Matiyalmera, Rawalakot. The Observatory corroborated the location, date and ownership of the property shown in a photograph of the blaze. Local sources alleged that a drone was involved. The cause of the fire, the use of any munition and responsibility for the incident remain unresolved.
Representatives of the Jammu Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee (JKJAAC) alleged that security forces used firearms, drones and heavy weapons against protesters and residential areas. Police reportedly said that armed individuals fired on officers during an operation to remove barricades. Both accounts require independent investigation.
JKHRO calls on the authorities in Pakistan-administered Jammu and Kashmir and the relevant federal authorities to:
Appoint investigators independent of the units involved, with access to witnesses, medical records and the site of the residential fire.
Preserve evidence immediately, including deployment orders, command and radio communications, ammunition records, drone flight logs, original video footage and fire-service records.
Protect families, witnesses and medical staff from reprisals, and ensure safe access for lawyers, journalists and independent human rights monitors.
Publish a reconciled casualty list and the investigation’s findings, explain the evidence supporting those findings and provide effective remedies wherever investigators establish unlawful conduct.
On 5 November, JKHRO sought an official response from AJK Police, the Home Department, the Poonch district administration and relevant federal authorities. A response was pending at the report’s publication cut-off.