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3 Hurriyat leaders released in Delhi

Three top Kashmiri separatist leaders were released on Tuesday in New Delhi in an apparent bid to defuse rising tension in Kashmir after police opened fire on a crowd of Muslim demonstrators, killing seven.

Syed Ali Geelani, Abdul Gani Bhat and Moulvi Abass Ansari, all leaders of the Kashmir Freedom Conference -- an amalgam of two dozen separatist political groups -- said they were released Tuesday morning after being flown overnight to New Delhi from Jodhpur jail in the northern state of Rajasthan.

"For the moment, we have been told that we cannot return to Kashmir, presumably because the authorities think our presence might worsen the situation there," Bhat said.

"But we will be leaving for Kashmir in a couple of days' time," he said, refusing to confirm or deny rumours that the Conference leaders would be holding talks with government officials here.

Analysts said the releases were clearly aimed at calming Muslim anger in Kashmir after police shot dead the seven demonstrators on Monday.

The Kashmir valley was paralysed on Tuesday by a general strike in protest at the killings, which occurred near the town of Anantnag.

A curfew in Anantnag was extended to nearby townships amid sporadic outbursts of violence.

The Conference leaders were detained in September last year for organising a boycott of general elections in Kashmir and held under the Public Safety Act.

Human rights groups, including Amnesty International, had been calling for their release and the issue was also reportedly raised by US President Bill Clinton during his state visit to India last month.

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