Pakistan criticizes India for alleged 'extrajudicial' killings of 5 Kashmiris

By Islamuddin Sajid

ISLAMABAD (AA) – Pakistan on Thursday condemned the latest killings of five Kashmiris in the Indian-administered valley on Thursday, calling them "extrajudicial killings" by Indian security forces with complete impunity.

In a statement, the Foreign Ministry alleged that Indian forces killed 30 Kashmiris in encounters, or so-called "cordon and search operations" during one and a half months, including "five Kashmiris, who were killed in the Kulgam area on Wednesday."

"The killing spree of innocent Kashmiris perpetrated by Indian occupation forces continues with shameless impunity. It further exposes the unspeakable violence being perpetrated by the ‘Hindutva’ inspired extremist BJP-RSS (Bharatiya Janata Party-Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh) combine that has turned IIOJK (Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir) into an inferno where no one, not even innocent civilians, professionals, women, children and elderly are safe from the state-terrorism of the occupation forces," the Foreign Ministry further alleged.

The Kashmir police, on the other hand, claimed to have killed five militants during encounters in southern Kashmir, including a commander of the Lashkar-e-Taiba.

On Monday, Indian forces killed four Kashmiris, including a local businessman named Altaf Ahmad, whom police claimed were "militants," but did not return their bodies to their families.

Asma Bhat, the niece of Altaf Ahmad, told Anadolu Agency on Tuesday that the police used his uncle as a human shield during the operation. She said at the beginning of the cordon and search operation, security forces gathered Ahmed and several other nearby shopkeepers in the building.

The Ahmad family also staged a protest and demanded that his body be returned for last rites. However, top police official Vijay Kumar stated that the body was not handed over to the family due to concerns about "law and order disturbance."

Since March of last year, police have stopped handing over the bodies of militants or their alleged associates to their families, asserting that the funerals of militants drew large crowds that quickly morphed into pro-freedom rallies.

The police now bury militants in a few remote hamlets, often in the evenings in the presence of their parents and a couple of other relatives.

"Also condemnable is the inhuman and callous practice of the Indian occupation forces of not handing over the mortal remains of the martyred Kashmiris to their families in many instances. Usurping the fundamental rights of Kashmiri families by denying them the right of proper burial of martyrs further exposes the current Indian government's moral bankruptcy," said Pakistan's Foreign Ministry alleged.

It added, "The killings of Kashmiri civilians by Indian occupation forces also vindicates the irrefutable facts provided by Pakistan recently in a comprehensive dossier exposing human rights violations and war crimes committed by Indian occupation forces in IIOJK."

Islamabad also urged the international community to take notice of the continuous violations of human rights and hold India accountable for crimes against humanity committed in Indian-administered Kashmir.

- Disputed region

Kashmir, a Muslim-majority Himalayan region, is held by India and Pakistan in parts and claimed by both in full. A small sliver of Kashmir is also held by China.

Since they were partitioned in 1947, India and Pakistan have fought three wars – in 1948, 1965, and 1971 – two of them over Kashmir.

Indian and Pakistani troops have also fought intermittently in the northern Siachen region since 1984. A cease-fire took effect in 2003.

Some Kashmiri groups in Jammu and Kashmir have been fighting against Indian rule for independence or for unification with neighboring Pakistan.

According to several human rights organizations, thousands have reportedly been killed in the conflict since 1989.