35 Kashmiris martyred in less than 2 months as Indian atrocities continue with impunity in IIOJK: FO

Islamabad: The Foreign Office Thursday said that 35 innocent Kashmiris had been martyred in IIOJK in less than two months as Indian occupation forces continue to commit grave crimes including enforced disappearances, targeted and extra-judicial killings.

“Nothing can obfuscate Indian state-terrorism perpetuated with shameless impunity in IIOJK. Nor could use of brutal force ever succeed in breaking the will of the Kashmiri people struggling for their inalienable right to self-determination,” FO spokesperson Asim Iftikhar Ahmed said in his weekly press briefing.

He said three more Kashmiris had been martyred in a fake encounter on Wednesday in Srinagar.

He said Pakistan strongly condemned Indian state terrorism and extra-judicial killings of innocent Kashmiris in fake encounters and so-called “cordon and search operations”.

The spokesperson said that the UN human rights machinery, independent NGOs and global media had consistently expressed concerns over increasing intimidation, harassment and reprisal attacks by Indian occupation forces against Kashmiri human rights defenders, journalists and civil society actors over the last two years.

The detention of Khurram Parvez is the most recent example that has been widely condemned by the international community, he added.

Highlighting the diplomatic activities held during last week, he mentioned the visit of Secretary-General of the Digital Cooperation Organization Deemah Al Yahya, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi’s representation at the 20th Anniversary Meeting of the SCO Council of Heads of Government and 13th ASEM (Asia Europe Meeting) Summit on Thursday.

During the last week, Foreign Secretary Sohail Mahmood separately received Japan’s Ambassador-designate Wada Mitsuhiro and Cambodia’s non-resident Ambassador, Ung Sean. He also received Nigel Casey, UK’s Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan.

He also mentioned the 9th meeting of the Russia-Pakistan Joint Working Group on Combatting International Terrorism and Other Challenges to Security held in Moscow, the visit of a United States Congressional Delegation which called on the foreign minister.

The spokesperson told media that Pakistan and the Republic of Palau had established diplomatic relations on November 22, in a ceremony held in New York. “It is our earnest hope that this will open new vistas of cooperation between the two countries,” he remarked.

Referring to Afghanistan, he said Pakistan continued to provide humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan in foodstuff and medicines.

“We have provided four C-130 plane-loads and 101 truck-loads containing 1658 MT of foodstuffs and medicines in recent weeks to Afghanistan,” he said.

The spokesperson said recently Prime Minister has also pledged an additional Rs 5 billion for in-kind assistance to Afghanistan. As a goodwill gesture towards the brotherly Afghan people, the Government of Pakistan has decided to allow the transportation of 50,000 Metric Tonnes of wheat and lifesaving medicines from India to Afghanistan via Wagah Border on an exceptional basis for humanitarian purposes.

The decision to this effect was conveyed to India’s Charge d’Affaires at the Foreign Office Wednesday, he said.

Referring to the Indian Defence Minister’s “irresponsible, provocative and gratuitous” remarks recently, as well as India’s farcical and fabricated claim of downing a Pakistani F-16 aircraft, and awarding Indian pilot on that basis, the spokesperson said, “while all this fantasizing by India would have appeased, and rather amused many, it obviously had no credibility whatsoever in the eyes of the international community.”

To a question about the unfreezing of Afghanistan’s assets, the spokesperson said it had been raised and discussed on various occasions and fora. Pakistan and other countries have been saying that it needs to be considered as a way of supporting the Afghan people who are faced with immense challenges.

Asked about the CPEC, Asim Iftikhar said entering a stage of high-quality development, Pakistan and China were committed to a clean and green vision of CPEC.

“This vision is being translated into reality through projects such as the Karot hydropower project, which will improve Pakistan’s access to clean, low-cost and sustainable energy,” he remarked.

“We look forward to the timely completion of Karot and all other CPEC projects, demonstrating the abiding commitment of Pakistan and China to realizing the full potential of this transformative undertaking and giving play to its role in actualizing Pakistan’s geo-economics vision,” he added.

To another question, the spokesperson confirmed that Pakistan would host the OIC meeting of foreign ministers (OIC-ICFM) on March 22-23, 2022.