Daily Times

Prime Minister Imran Khan Monday reiterated that Pakistan stood unequivocally with the Kashmiri people in their struggle for freedom from the tyranny of one of the most ruthless, inhumane and illegal occupation in modern history.

On his Twitter handle, the prime minister posted his tweets in connection with the observance of Kashmiris’ Right to Self-Determination Day on January 5.

“We call on the international community to take action against the well-documented human rights violations being committed with impunity by Indian occupation forces against innocent Kashmiri men, women & children; & to ensure Kashmiris get their right to self determination,” he posted in late-night tweets.

The prime minister said on January 5, 1949, the United Nations guaranteed the right to self-determination for the people of Jammu and Kashmir through an impartial plebiscite.

“We observe this day as a reminder to the UN & its member states of their unfulfilled commitment to the Kashmiri people,” he added.

Despite suffering 73 years of brutal Indian occupation, the prime minister said generation after generation of the Kashmiri people remained steadfast in the demand for their inalienable right to self- determination as guaranteed to them under the UN Charter and by the UNSC (United Nations Security Council).

Meanwhile, the Foreign Office strongly condemned the latest extrajudicial killings by the Indian occupation forces of three Kashmiri youth in Srinagar on December 29 and their refusal to handover bodies to their families.

The FO said the families and neighbours of the martyred Kashmiris – Aijaz Maqbool Ganie, Zubair Ahmed Lone and Athar Mushtaq Wani (aged 16 and student of Class 11) – had affirmed that the young boys were innocent, who visited Srinagar on the fateful day and became victims of Indian state-terrorism.

“It is doubly inhuman that the bodies of the three martyrs are not handed over to their families for a proper burial, despite repeated appeals from the families,” FO said in a statement.

It further termed it a “new form of oppression” that the Indian occupation forces were now resorting to in order to break the will of the Kashmiri people and emphasised that they would never succeed in this attempt.

“The unabated killing spree in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) and the reprehensible refusal to hand over the bodies should be a matter of grave concern for the people of conscience across the world,” it stressed.

The FO underscored that the “morally bankrupt RSS-BJP regime” should not be allowed to act with such impunity.

It said that Pakistan had consistently emphasised that the gross and systematic violations of human rights being perpetrated by the Indian occupation forces warranted an investigation by a UN Commission of Inquiry, as recommended by the OHCHR in its Kashmir reports of 2018 and 2019.

“Pakistan reiterates its call for an independent inquiry under international scrutiny to investigate the extrajudicial killings of Kashmiris by Indian occupation forces and to bring the perpetrators of these heinous crimes to justice,” the FO statement added.

Also, Pakistan welcomed a decision by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Qatar to reopen the land, air and sea borders between the two countries. “We also appreciate other steps being taken by the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), which will contribute to resolution of outstanding issues between the countries of the organization persisting for almost four years,” Foreign Office spokesperson Zahid Hafiz Chaudhri said in a statement.

He said Pakistan lauded the positive role played by the Emir of Kuwait towards the resolution of the differences between the GCC countries. His persistent and sincere efforts, and cooperation of the GCC countries, led to this important and amicable outcome, he added.

The spokesperson hoped that the GCC Summit, being held today in Al-Ula, will further build on these encouraging developments and lead to enhanced confidence and cooperation among the countries of the organisation.