Kashmir: The Insurgency Fades

Or so the BBC reports:

During 2011, roughly 100 former militants left Pakistan along with their families and returned to their native villages on the Indian side.

Their fate was closely watched by fighters still stranded in Pakistan.

"Nothing bad happened to them," says Rafiq Ahmed, another former fighter in Muzaffarabad who has been in touch with some of the returnees.

"They were held by the Indian police for debriefing for a few days, and were then released. They are now living normal lives."

Thus emboldened, more than 500 fighters have returned to their native homes on the Indian side during the first five months of 2012, says Ghulam Mohammad, a former insurgent who is close to the people involved with the repatriation issues of Kashmiri militants.

"Most of them were married and they have also taken along their families - some 1,000 to 1,500 people in all," he says.

Mr Mohammad says that between 10 and 15 former fighters are leaving Pakistan every week, along with their families.