Directions: In the following passage, some words have been left out. Read the passage carefully and select the correct answer for the given blank out of the given alternatives.

On a cold winter morning in late January, a dozen of these armed men stood atop the roof of a one-story restaurant in Srinagar, Kashmir’s largest city and the region’s summer capital, and (1) _______ (look steadily) down at the traffic below. I watched them watching my car, their bodies (2) _______ (outlined) against a steel sky. Blocks of snow lined the road, and as my car (3) _______ (move heavily) into the heart of the city, my breath came out in misty puffs. When I instinctively pulled out my phone to check the weather, however, it was useless: Since August 5, Indian authorities have kept the people of Kashmir in a digital blackout, (4) _______ (hindering) most internet access. At 205 days and counting, it’s the longest-running internet shutdown in any (5) _______ (representative government) so far, seven months in March. That means no email. No WhatsApp. No maps. And no weather.