GENEVA – The United Nations called on July 17 for impartial investigations into dozens of reported deaths that have occurred in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, a wave of unrest ahead of regional elections.

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk “appeals for calm in Pakistan-administered Kashmir”, his spokesman Jeremy Laurence told reporters in Geneva.

The call, he said, came after dozens of people, mostly protesters but also some law enforcement personnel, have reportedly been killed since June ahead of a vote for the region’s legislative assembly on July 27.

Turk wants “prompt, thorough and impartial investigations into all deaths that have occurred due to the unrest, both amongst protesters and members of security forces”, Laurence added.

Supporters of the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC), an anti-government movement demanding economic and governance reforms, have been pressing ahead with protests despite the group being banned under anti-terrorism laws in June, allegedly for threatening public order and security.

Days of violent clashes between police and protesters led by the JAAC also gripped the Himalayan region in September 2025, with nine confirmed killed.

Muslim-majority Kashmir is claimed in full by both India and Pakistan, but has been divided between them since their independence from British rule.

The area is considered highly sensitive by the Pakistani military and government after years of frequent skirmishes and full-blown wars with India.

The rights office decried the recent arrests of some of JAAC&rs...