Officials in India-controlled Kashmir began restoring telephone service Saturday to the Himalayan region.
The Indian-controlled section of disputed Kashmir has been under lockdown since early August, when New Delhi deployed tens of thousands of additional troops to the region as it cut off landlines, mobile phones and the internet and stripped the Muslim-majority region of its autonomy.
The U.N. Security Council held a private meeting Friday to discuss India’s decision to revoke Kashmir’s special status which has escalated tensions with neighboring Pakistan.
Kashmir is divided between India and Pakistan, but is claimed in full by both.
Kashmir has been a regional flashpoint for decades. Nuclear powers India and Pakistan have fought several wars over Kashmir since they both gained independence from Britain in 1947.