APHC condemns extrajudicial killings and mass arrests in IIOJK, demands accountability
Srinagar: The All Parties Hurriyat Conference and other pro-freedom organizations have strongly condemned the extrajudicial killings of two innocent civilians in Baramulla and Kathua districts as well as the mass arrests of Kashmiri youth by Indian troops in occupied Jammu and Kashmir.
According to Kashmir Media Service, APHC spokesman Advocate Abdul Rashid Minhas, alongside Jammu Kashmir Muslim League, Jammu Kashmir Democratic Freedom Party, Tehreek-e-Hurriyat Jammu Kashmir, Tehreek-e-Wahdat-e-Islami and Pairwan-e-Wilayat in their statements in Srinagar, said that IIOJK has witnessed upsurge in extrajudicial killings, fake encounters, arbitrary arrests and torture over the past few years. They stressed that these actions are designed to instill widespread fear among the Kashmiri population and to force them to abandon their legitimate struggle for freedom.
The organizations expressed alarm over the BJP-led Indian government’s intensified crackdown on pro-freedom Kashmiris. They highlighted how Indian military and paramilitary forces have been granted unchecked powers to carry out systematic repression of the people. The entire occupied territory, they pointed out, has been transformed into an open-air prison, with innocent youth being detained on fabricated charges and subjected to torture in undisclosed jails and interrogation centers.
They revealed that over 500 youth have been illegally arrested in recent days during intense cordon and search operations and raids across IIOJK. These mass arrests, they emphasized, are aimed at instilling fear and terror, not only among the families of the detained youth but also within the broader population. The goal, they pointed out, is to crush political dissent and suppress the legitimate freedom movement in the territory. They further emphasized that India is fighting a losing battle in occupied Jammu and Kashmir and despite its brutal tactics, New Delhi has failed to break the unyielding resolve of the Kashmiri people.
The APHC and other organizations called for an immediate, transparent investigation into the cold-blooded killings of innocent civilians in Baramulla and Kathua, demanding that those responsible within the Indian forces be held accountable for their actions. They also called for the immediate and unconditional release of all unlawfully detained Kashmiri youth, urging an end to the ongoing reign of terror and repression in the territory.
Furthermore, they urged the international community to urgently address the worsening situation in IIOJK. They urged global powers to recognize the deepening human rights crisis and to take decisive action in resolving the longstanding Kashmir dispute, which remains at the heart of regional instability and widespread violations of human rights in the occupied territory.
