Kashmir News Weekly Roundup: 8/6-8/13
Exclusive:
Indian Occupation forcing Kashmiris to attend official functions
Ahead of India’s Independence day, Occupation Authorities have been forcing Kashmiris to attend their official functions. Students from several colleges were coerced by the authorities to join the ‘Tiranga Rally’ that the Indian military organized on August 14th, Pakistan’s Independence Day. After being made to stand in the sun all day, at least 15 students collapsed from dehydration and were eventually brought to the hospital, according to a student who spoke with us.
The student revealed that, “one of the teachers who recorded a video was severely beaten by the armed forces, and his mobile phone was taken.” Additionally, a formal order was issued by the occupying authority mandating that government departments and educational institutions fly the tricolor from their structures on August 14th. According to the regulation, the authorities must provide images and recordings of the incident, failing which “stern action would be taken against defaulters.”
Sources revealed that the authorities also forced families of active resistance fighters to hoist the Indian flag at their residences “otherwise they would be booked under anti-terror laws like UAPA and PSA.” Several Hurriyat leaders and ex-militant commanders were also intimidated and forced to attend the formal events that the occupation authorities held in Srinagar.
Exclusive:
Jailed civilian’s family tortured for receiving ‘coded instructions’ from imprisoned relative
On the pretext that they had received “coded instructions” from their incarcerated relative in India’s Tihar jail, the Indian occupying forces arrested four family members of a Kashmiri prisoner. The South Kashmiri civilian was detained in 2019 on spurious charges of collaborating with militant groups.
A family member stated, “he was detained during mass arrests of 2019 on the suspicion of working with militant outfits,” adding that their son frequently volunteered for local religious and social activities. The family thinks their kid is being punished because of his affiliation with the local Jamat-e-Islami volunteers.
“We get to talk to him once a week over the phone,” a family member said. “He called asking for some clothes last month as it is too hot and humid in Delhi’s Tihar.” The following day, the family received a call from the army summoning the brothers of the jailed civilian. “The brothers were released after two weeks of torture,” the relatives said.
Indian army launches offensive against Kashmiri civilians in Qazigund
In the past week, the Qazigund region of South Kashmir has seen over 300 people detained by the occupying Indian army. An IED was detonated near an army vehicle on August 5th, following an ambush operation by the resistance fighters a few weeks earlier in July.
The military has increased the number of civilian arrests in the region following back-to-back strikes. Locals revealed that “the Indian armed forces have also brutally beaten women and children,” adding that “the arrested civilians are mostly teenagers and young boys.”
Internet services and phone networks have also been jammed in the area. Other than frisking and night raids, the locals have also been tortured during daily army patrols. “I was coming back from work in the evening when army men patrolling our village stopped me. After hours of torture I was allowed to go home,” a local told us. Moreover, ID cards and phones of civilians are also being confiscated by the armed forces. As per locals, forces from different camps take away ID cards and phones of men, and it is only after torturing them inside the camps, the items are returned.
News Updates
Indian army finally admits ambush operations by resistance groups in Rajouri, Poonch
Multiple armed resistance groups that have attacked Indian forces repeatedly over the past few years in Jammu and Kashmir’s Poonch and Rajouri districts have finally been acknowledged by the occupying Indian forces as having caused them serious damage and fatalities.
On Sunday, Mukesh Singh, the additional director general of police for the Jammu Zone, said that three groups are attempting to resurrect resistance in the area by being active in the Poonch and Rajouri districts. In response to the killing of a resistance fighter during a military operation in Rajouri district, the ADGP was speaking at a joint news conference.
Notably, Indian military forces have been harassing the local civilian population in the area after failing to track the movement of the resistance fighters. These districts have also seen a rise in the frequency of large-scale civilian arrests, torture, and raids by Indian authorities.
174 civilians, 1002 resistance fighters killed in Jammu and Kashmir between 2018-2022
On Wednesday, the Indian government’s Ministry of Home Affairs acknowledged that 174 civilians were killed in Jammu and Kashmir between 2018 and 2022. It was also revealed that 308 members of the Indian army and 1002 members of the resistance movement were killed during military operations, which were carried out by the occupying Indian forces.
Notably, India’s puppet government in the disputed territory has been spreading disinformation about progress and peace in an effort to pass off the situation as “normal” and justify India’s illegitimate occupation of Jammu and Kashmir.
Yasin Malik appears virtually in NIA plea seeking ‘death penalty’ the JKLF chief
On Wednesday, for the hearing in an appeal filed by NIA of India seeking death penalty for the Kashmiri leader, the chairman of Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front Mohammed Yasin Malik appeared virtually.
Senior resistance leader of Kashmir, Yasin Malik appeared before the Delhi Court via video conference in an alleged ‘terror funding case’. Yasin Malik is currently serving life imprisonment after he was convicted last year. The court however adjourned the matter due to “non-availability of bench.”
Hundreds of Kashmiris are being incarcerated inhumanely in various jails in India on fabricated charges, including Malik and several resistance commanders. The majority of them have been imprisoned in these facilities for more than five years without having been tried.
Two civilians arrested in Srinagar under fake label of ‘militant associates‘
On Wednesday, the Srinagar area of central Kashmir saw the arrest of two civilians by Indian occupation forces and police under the fictitious designation of being “militant associates.”
The detained civilians were named as Arshad Mushtaq S/o Mushtaq Mangroo of Badibagh Pulwama & Suhail Majeed Mir S/o Abdul Majeed Mir of Machpuna Pulwama. They were allegedly linked to the Jaish-e-Mohammed group.
Notably, the army and Indian agencies have detained thousands of innocent Kashmiris inhumanely in various jails in India under false pretenses. Most of the incarcerated Kashmiris have never been tried in court.
Two civilians injured in explosion during military operation in South Kashmir
Two civilians were injured in a grenade blast during a military operation in the Athlan Gadole area of Kokernag in south Kashmir’s Anantnag district on Thursday.
A top police officer said that a search party of Indian armed forces launched a cordon and search operation in Athlan Gadole village and as the joint team of forces started searches, a grenade was lobbed on them by the resistance fighters.
The occupying forces have intensified night searches and raids throughout Kashmir ahead of India’s Independence Day on the 15th of August.
Srinagar admin directs Tehsildars to oversee smart meter installation
Despite strong popular resistance across the disputed territory, the District administration of Srinagar has granted magisterial permission for the installation of smart meters. The Deputy Commissioner of Srinagar has issued an order directing Tehsildars of District Srinagar to offer magisterial support during the installation of smart electricity meters within their respective jurisdictions in response to a request from the Senior Superintendent of Police, Srinagar.
It has been mandated that the chosen Tehsildars work closely with the Superintendent of Police in their zones to provide magisterial support throughout the installation procedure. Numerous protests against the installation of smart meters have been recorded in Srinagar and Jammu city as well. The protestors cite low income and unemployment as reasons for their opposition to the installations of these meters, which they claim are only a means to exploit them.
Despite being a hub for producing renewable energy in the form of hydroelectricity, Kashmir suffers the worst imposed electricity crisis throughout the year. While the transmission lines carry energy from Kashmir to parts of north India, Kashmir’s own energy is denied to its people.
If there is peace in JK, then why are bullets being fired: Farooq Abdullah
On Saturday, Farooq Abdullah, the president of the National Conference (NC), questioned the Indian government’s assertions that life is returning to normal in Jammu and Kashmir and asked, “If there is peace in Jammu and Kashmir, why are bullets being fired?”
Until India and Pakistan have sincere negotiations on the Kashmir problem, the former chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir stated, “promoting border tourism or holding rallies in Jammu and Kashmir is only a gimmick that will go on.”
“The hearts of both countries should be pure. There has been enough showing-off,” Abdullah said. India and Pakistan should talk with pure intentions as wars do not resolve anything, he added. “Till both the countries do not talk with honesty over Kashmir, all this is a show-off. It will happen every year but the (Kashmir) issue will remain there,” he said.
