By Asghar Ali Mubarak
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Monday strongly condemned the killing of nine Kashmiri fighters by Indian forces in occupied Kashmir, terming them an act of “state terrorism”.
The Foreign Office statement came as four Kashmiris were killed by government forces in occupied Kashmir’s southern Shopian area on Monday, just hours after five fighters died in a firefight in the same area.
“Pakistan strongly condemns the unabated extrajudicial killings of Kashmiri youth in acts of state terrorism perpetrated by Indian occupation forces in Indian occupied Jammu and Kashmir,” FO Spokesperson Aisha Farooqui said in a statement. She noted that nine Kashmiri fighters were killed at the hands of Indian troops during the last 24 hours in “fake encounters” and so-called “cordon-and-search” operations in Shopian.
She said several houses in the area were also destroyed and pellet guns and tear gas used against Kashmiri civilians who took to the streets to protest Indian brutalities. “Infliction of such collective punishment to [a] community is tantamount to crimes against humanity.”
She added that it was “highly reprehensible” that India remains “busy in intensifying its brutalisation” of the Kashmiri people while the world community grapples with the coronavirus pandemic.
The FO said extrajudicial killings of Kashmiris in fake encounters by the Indian forces are being perpetrated with “complete impunity” under the cover of draconian laws, adding that the Indian forces neither reveal the identities of the deceased nor hand over their bodies to the families for burial.
“The ‘Hindutva’ agenda of the RSS-BJP combine is targeting defenceless Kashmiris with mindless violence to break their will,” she said, adding that India’s efforts to “subjugate” the Kashmiri people through killings, torture, forced disappearances, incarcerations and brutalisation will not succeed.
The FO stressed that it is the responsibility of the world community to urgently act and protect the Kashmiris from the “wanton killings and other brutalities” being inflicted on them by the Indian forces. “Pakistan will continue to call for holding India accountable for its crimes against the Kashmiri people.” Armed ‘encounters’ are frequent in the occupied Himalayan region, but the fighting has intensified with at least 85 fighters and dozens of government forces killed this year.
In the latest incident, soldiers cordoned a village in Shopian early Monday after a tip-off from police, army spokesman Colonel Rajesh Kalia said, according to media. A firefight broke out and four suspected Kashmiri fighters were killed, he added. Soldiers also blew up at least one home, another police officer and locals said.
An army officer, who spoke to media on condition of anonymity, said three soldiers were wounded in the confrontation. Hundreds of villagers rallied in support of the fighters, throwing stones and shouting slogans against Indian rule as the firefight raged, a police officer and locals said. On Sunday, five fighters were killed after Indian soldiers and counterinsurgency police cordoned off Shopian’s Reban village.
Tensions remain high in occupied Kashmir after New Delhi in August revoked its semi-autonomous status and imposed a lengthy curfew.
Pakistan sharply criticised the move and there has been a frequent exchange of fire across the heavily militarised Line of Control.
Since 1989, armed Kashmir groups have fought against some 500,000 Indian soldiers deployed in the territory, demanding independence or Kashmir’s merger with Pakistan. India regularly blames Pakistan for arming and training fighters before sending them across the border, charges that Islamabad denies. Pakistan on Monday has categorically rejected India’s malicious assertions based on complete distortion of facts to advance its false and self-serving narrative. Even the remarks of the Prime Minister of Pakistan have been completely twisted. This mischievous attempt is highly condemnable.
According to press release issued by Foreign Office, the Indian Ministry of External Affairs’ statement of 5 June 2020 is continuation of their desperate campaign to divert international attention from India’s state-terrorism in Indian Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IOJ&K) and its continuing crimes against the Kashmiri people.
Pakistan has been the principal victim of terrorism, including terrorism perpetrated against our people from across the border. Tens of thousands of our citizens have lost their lives, while thousands of our valiant law enforcement personnel have made the ultimate sacrifice in Pakistan’s resolute fight against terrorism. Pakistan’s sacrifices and contribution in combating the scourge of terrorism have been recognized by the international community, the press released read.
It further added, “Senior Indian officials and other Indian commentators have frequently boasted about destabilizing parts of Pakistan and of their nefarious designs to use terrorism as state policy against Pakistan. Today, the Hindutva-driven saffron terror against India’s minorities, Indian state-terrorism in IOJ&K, and India’s use of terrorism as an instrument to destabilize its neighbours stands fully exposed.”
It is India that is seeking to distort and misrepresent the report of the UN Security Council’s Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team to promote its anti-Pakistan propaganda. We are sure that the world community will not be misled, the FO stated. The press released also asserted, “Pakistan’s role as a facilitator to the ongoing peace process in Afghanistan has been widely acknowledged by the relevant international partners. Pakistan had, since the beginning of the Afghan Peace process, alerted the international community about the role of spoilers in the region, who do not wish to see peace, stability and prosperity return to Afghanistan and waste no opportunity to create obstacles in the successful advancement of the peace process.
