ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan warned citizens Wednesday that anyone who goes to fight jihad in Kashmir will hurt the territory’s cause, as anger simmers between Islamabad and New Delhi over the disputed region.
Indian authorities are waiting for “any excuse” to crack down in the Himalayan region, he warned, promising again to raise the issue at the United Nations General Assembly next week.
Tensions have spiked over Kashmir, parts of which are administered by both India and Pakistan, since Delhi moved on August 5 to revoke the autonomy of the portion it controls.
Since then, leaders in both countries have engaged in an escalating war of words, with Delhi warning that Pakistan — long believed to be using proxy militant groups in Kashmir — was planning attacks.
Islamabad has promised to stand by the Kashmiris following the move and publicly accused India of carrying out a potential “genocide” in the region.
India has flooded its side of Kashmir with troops in a security clampdown to prevent any violence, igniting outrage in Pakistan.
“If someone from Pakistan goes to India to fight... he will be the first to do an injustice to Kashmiris, he will be the enemy of Kashmiris,” Khan said during a speech in Torkham, on the border with Afghanistan.
“They need an excuse,” he said of Indian troops. “It will provide them an excuse for torture and barbarism.”
Kashmir, split between the two countries since 1947, has been the spark for two major wars and countless clashes between them.
Khan spoke after Pakistan fired back Wednesday at Delhi’s “jingoistic rhetoric” when India’s foreign minister vowed to retake Islamabad’s portion of Kashmir.
“We strongly condemn and reject” the remarks, Pakistan’s foreign ministry said in a statement hours after Subrahmanyam Jaishankar told a press conference Tuesday that Pakistani-controlled Kashmir is “part of India and we expect one day that we will have the... physical jurisdiction over it.”
In the latest move, Pakistan said Wednesday it had denied Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi permission to fly through its airspace due to the “situation in Indian occupied Kashmir.”
“Keeping in mind the situation in Indian occupied Kashmir and India’s behavior and the cruelty and barbarism, the violation of rights being done there, it has been decided that the Indian PM will not be allowed,” to use Pakistan’s airspace, Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi said in a video statement posted on social media.
Qureshi said Modi had requested to use Pakistani airspace on September 20 and 28 for a trip to and from Germany.
Tensions have spiraled since New Delhi’s move on its side of the de facto border — the Line of Control — to change the status of the Himalayan territory, with Pakistan repeatedly likening Modi to Hitler and calling for international intervention.
Khan has held demonstrations across the country to protest against the move and will highlight the issue later this month at the UN General Assembly in New York.
Prime minister warns Pakistanis against jihad in Kashmir
Prime minister warns Pakistanis against jihad in Kashmir
- Khan’s statement comes a day after India’s foreign minister vowed to retake Pakistan-administered Kashmir
- Bilateral tensions escalated on Aug 5. when Delhi abrogated Muslim-majority Kashmir’s special legal status
Pakistan engages Saudi Arabia, China in bid to ease surging Middle East tensions
- Pakistan’s foreign minister stresses need for de-escalation in conversations with Chinese, Saudi counterparts
- Tensions in the Middle East continue to remain high as conflict between US, Israel and Iran intensifies
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar spoke to the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia and China on Tuesday, stressing the importance of diplomatic engagement to de-escalate tensions in the Middle East as the Iran war intensifies.
Pakistan has constantly engaged regional countries in efforts to broker a ceasefire in the Middle East, after the US and Isreal launched coordinated strikes against Iran on Feb. 28.
Iran launched fresh attacks on Gulf countries on Tuesday morning, where it has targeted US military bases in recent weeks. In addition to firing missiles and drones at Israel and American bases in the region, Iran has also been targeting energy infrastructure which, combined with its stranglehold on the Strait of Hormuz, has sent oil prices soaring worldwide.
Dar spoke to Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan to discuss developments in the Middle East and ongoing deliberations at the UN Security Council, Pakistan’s foreign office said in a statement.
“DPM/FM shared Pakistan’s perspective, underscoring the importance of continued coordination and diplomatic engagement to support de-escalation and promote peace and stability across the region and beyond,” the statement said.
Dar, who also serves as Pakistan’s foreign minister, spoke to Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi over the telephone separately. The two discussed the evolving regional situation and broader global developments.
Dar underscored the need to ease tensions in the Middle East and the wider region during the conversation, the foreign office said.
Yi appreciated Pakistan’s constructive efforts aimed at promoting de-escalation and stability in the region, it added.
“The two leaders stressed the importance of de-escalation and emphasized the need to pursue dialogue and diplomacy in accordance with the principles of the UN Charter,” the foreign office’s statement said.
The conflict in the Middle East has hit Pakistan hard as well, forcing Islamabad to hike petrol and diesel prices by Rs55 per liter last Friday.
Pakistan’s government has also announced a set of austerity measures, which include closing schools and cutting down on government expenditures, as it evaluates petrol stocks and looks for alternative supply routes.
