THREE OF THE eight civilians picked up by security forces Friday morning for questioning in connection with a militant ambush the previous day on two Army vehicles in J&K’s Poonch district, were found dead in the night in the Topa Pir area, leading to a huge outrage in the region.

Four Army soldiers were killed and three others injured in the militant attack on Thursday evening.

The three civilians who died Friday night were Safeer Ahmed, 48, and his two cousins and co-villagers Mohammad Showkat, 28, and Shabir Ahmed, 25. After the burial rituals of Safeer at their ancestral graveyard in Topa Pir area Saturday afternoon, his brother Noor Ahmed, who is a Head Constable in the Border Security Force, told The Indian Express, “This is the prize we have got for working for the nation.”

The burial of the three civilians took place amidst unprecedented restrictions imposed by the local administration in movement between Buffliaz in Poonch district and Thamamandi side of the Dehra Ki Gali in Rajouri district, and suspension of mobile internet services in the two border districts.

This story was originally published in indianexpress.com. Read the full story here .