India police arrest Kashmir activists amid rising tensions

Police have arrested at least 200 activists seeking the end of Indian rule in disputed Kashmir, escalating fears among already wary residents that a sweeping crackdown could touch off renewed anti-India protests and clashes.

The crackdown comes amid high tension between India and Pakistan following a suicide car bombing of a paramilitary convoy that killed 40 Indian soldiers on Feb. 14.

Police said Saturday that they went to neighborhoods overnight and rounded up the leaders and activists of mainly Jama'at-e-Islami, a political-religious group that espouses the right to self-determination for Kashmir, a Himalayan territory divided between India and Pakistan but claimed by both wholly.

Police gave no reason for the arrests.