Three die in protests against flour and energy prices

Violence marred protests against price hikes in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, leaving three dead and 100 injured, authorities said, as the unrest entered its fifth day on Tuesday.

Thousands of people have been on the streets since Friday to protest against rising flour and electricity prices.

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif offered subsidies worth 23 billion rupees ($83 million; £65 million) on Monday but failed to quell the unrest.

Protests have intensified since the weekend, leading authorities to cut mobile services. Schools, public transport and businesses were also suspended.

The detention of protest leaders fueled the unrest.

On Monday, authorities deployed paramilitary troops known as rangers to the regional capital, Muzaffarabad.

Images of the protests show both sides attacking each other with sticks. Reports say paramilitary troops also fired bullets and threw tear gas at protesters.

One of the three who died was a police officer, authorities said.

At least two of the three victims died from gunshot wounds, the AFP news agency reported, citing a doctor at the Combined Military Hospitals in Pakistan.

“[The rangers] I shouldn’t have shot the protesters. We were just asking for our rights and we were shot in return,” Muhammad Qasim, a 37-year-old shopkeeper, told AFP.

The Joint Awami Action Committee, an activist group that started the protests, declared Tuesday a “Black Day” to honor those who died.

Pakistan-administered Kashmir is a semi-autonomous region with its own regional government.

Kashmir has been a source of conflict between India and Pakistan for more than 70 years.

Delhi and Islamabad fully claim the Himalayan region and have fought two wars and a limited conflict over Kashmir. Today, each of the neighbors controls only parts of it.