'No impact of truce on Kashmir unrest'

Analysts believe the ceasefire between the rival armies which came into effect at midnight Tuesday will have little impact on an anti-Indian rebellion being waged by Islamic militants since 1989 at a cost of thousands of lives.

Police by late Saturday had reported at least a dozen encounters since the start of the ceasefire between Indian troops and Islamic militants, claiming the lives of at least 24 people.

Tap Here to Add The Daily Star As A Trusted Source

The truce covers the 760-km de facto border -- the Line of Control (LoC) -- that splits Kashmir between India and Pakistan, the 230-km undisputed border, and another stretch of disputed border of about 110km further northeast called the Actual Ground Position Line (AGPL).

Kashmir's leading analyst Tahir Mohiudin pointed out that the truce covers only the border shelling and not the daily fighting between Indian troops and Kashmiri rebels.

"There is unlikely to be any immediate impact of the ceasefire on the ground situation in Kashmir as it (the truce) is meant for border areas only," Mohiudin said.

"The two are two different issues to me," he told AFP.

"It has definitely brought calm to the volatile borders as two armies are holding fire, but the violence within the state is continuing," he said.

Prior to the ceasefire, the rival armies skirmished almost daily over the LoC, shelling each other and killing dozens of civilians each year.

Both the rebels and the security forces have said the truce on the borders will not have any bearing on their ground operations.

"It is not like the ceasefire announced by India and Hizbul Mujahedin separately in the year 2000," said Mohiudin.

In July 2000 the region's dominant group Hizbul announced a unilateral ceasefire which was reciprocated when New Delhi called off operations against the group.