Internet severely disrupted in Pakistan-administered Kashmir

DPAMon, September 14, 2026 at 1:48 PM UTC1 min readAdd Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google.

Internet access in the Pakistan-administered part of Kashmir has been severely disrupted for 100 days, the NetBlocks organization that monitors internet shutdowns told dpa on Monday.

Internet access was restricted in the region following deadly protests that began in early June.

The main focus of the demonstrators was the process for the local elections that were due to take place at the time.

Although voting did not take place in the protest strongholds around the city of Rawalakot for security reasons, a government for the autonomous region has been formed based on the results from the rest of the region.

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The internet shutdown is causing severe problems, Javid Razzaq from the Kotli area of Kashmir told dpa. "Not having access to basic things like WhatsApp is painful," he said.

While automatic telling machines (ATMs) are working again, access to websites and apps used for online banking remains unavailable in a country where payments of this kind are common.

The Himalayan region of Kashmir is claimed by the nuclear-armed powers India and Pakistan. Each controls part of the territory.