ISLAMABAD – Tensions between the nuclear-armed Pakistan and India have begun to subside even though much is still needed to be done for normalcy, diplomatic sources said.
Senior officials at the foreign ministry told The Nation, India’s tone was well within the acceptable range after the initial hype.
“They are now beginning to understand we (Pakistan) are ready for war and peace is the only way out,” said an official who has been engaged in the back-channel contacts.
Tension between the uneasy neighbours soared after an attack last month on an Indian army base in Uri that killed 19 soldiers. This resulted in exchange of fire across the Line of Control – threatening to burst into a full-scale war.
The influential countries started their efforts to ensure peace in the region. The United Nations also has been playing some role.
The United States urged Pakistan and India to hold meaningful dialogue to try to address the issue of Kashmir and bring down the tension. “The US is quite active and asking both of us to be patient. We have told them we never wanted war nor will start it,” said the foreign ministry official.
“The US efforts have silenced India a bit and now they are showing signs of coming back to talks. This will take some time but we are seemingly on the right track now,” he added.
In Washington, US Department of State Spokesperson John Kirby said his country was asking Pakistan and India to work out bilaterally on the issue. He said terrorism is the common challenge in the region, and “we are going to continue to work with Pakistan as cooperatively as we can eliminate this menace.”
However, yesterday, former Azad Jammu and Kashmir prime minister Sardar Attique Ahmed Khan said his men will cross the LoC into India on November 24.
Khan, who heads the Muslim Conference, said his party wanted to show solidarity with Kashmiris on the other side of the LoC.
“To express our solidarity with oppressed mothers and sisters and highlight Indian atrocities in Occupied Kashmir, we have decided to cross the Line of Control on November 24,” he said at a news conference in Muzaffarabad.
Also yesterday, Army Chief Raheel Sharif visited frontline troops deployed along the LoC at Haji Pir Sector.
Meanwhile yesterday, Foreign Office spokesman Nafees Zakaria urged the international community to play its role for ending the bloodshed in the Held Kashmir.
“The culture of impunity for the occupation forces in IoK must come to an end. There should be fair, independent and transparent inquiry into the grave human rights violations of the innocent Kashmiri people,” Zakaria said.
He said the cold-blooded murder of 12-year-old schoolboy Junaid Ahmad was the worst example of “state terrorism of the Indian government and is indeed deplorable.”
In a statement issued here, Zakaria said, “The government and the people of Pakistan convey their deepest condolences on the Shahadat (martyrdom) of Junaid Ahmad in the Indian occupied Jammu and Kashmir, to the bereaved family.”
“The people of Kashmir are demanding their fundamental human rights, especially the right to self-determination, in accordance with UN Security Council resolutions,” he further said.
“The grave situation of human rights violations in IoK, growing atrocities and genocide of Kashmiris should be a matter of concern to the international community and the UN and warrants an immediate intervention to stop the bloodshed by India,” he added.
In three months, Zakaria added, continued bloodshed by Indian occupation forces had killed more than 115 innocent and defenceless Kashmiris besides hurting over 15,000 with scores in critical condition and hundreds blinded due to use of pellet guns, including children and women.
“A humanitarian crisis, created by the Indian occupation forces through shortage of food, medicines, water and other basic amenities, has added to the Kashmiris’ plight and the casualties,” he said.
Ahmad, a resident of Saidpora in downtown Srinagar of Occupied Kashmir, was critically injured after being hit by a shower of pellets outside his home. Police said security forces fired pellet guns after clashes in the area. Junaid, however, was not part of the protests.
The boy was standing at the main gate of his home in the Saidpora area in downtown area of city when he was hit by a volley of pellets.
Locals said as the funeral procession started near Aali Masjid, security forces tried to stop it. This led to further clashes and several people were injured in teargas shelling and pellet firing.
Pakistan’s Permanent Representative at the United Nations Geneva Office Tehmina Janjua said Islamabad will continue to appraise the international community of the atrocities on the people in Occupied Kashmir.
She stressed that India should allow the UN fact finding mission in occupied Kashmir to investigate the human rights violations taking place in the region.
And in a relevant development, Director General of Pakistan National Council of Arts Jamal Shah said India would be asked to return the ‘Dancing Girl’ statuette of Mohenjo-daro in a bid to protect the heritage.
The ‘Dancing Girl’ is a bronze statuette that is around 4,500 years old and is believed to be a signifier of Indus Valley Civilization which currently is placed in a museum in Indian capital, New Delhi.
Analyst Dr Muhammad Khan said tension persisted between Pakistan and India but there were peace efforts from both sides and the world.
“Normalcy will take time but tension is slowly diminishing. Pakistan has always advocated dialogue. It is for the US and other powerful countries to pressurise India for talks to solve the issues,” he said.http://nation.com.pk/national/10-Oct-2016/pak-india-tension-begins-to-subside
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