India, June 9 -- At least 11 people were killed and more than 70 others injured in violent clashes between protesters and security forces in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) ahead of a region-wide shutdown called by the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC), according to reports.

The unrest erupted in Rawalakot after authorities banned the JAAC, a civil society alliance that has spearheaded protests on economic and political issues across the region over the past two years. The organisation was declared unlawful under anti-terrorism legislation by the regional administration last week.

Tensions escalated when supporters of the JAAC gathered outside a hospital morgue where the body of a fellow activist had been taken following an earlier sh...