Another year has passed and the Kashmir issue stands unresolved.
Ruthless killings, pellet injuries, rapes, house arrests – Indian atrocities uninterruptedly escalated and so did the spirit and courage of Kashmiris in their fight for freedom.
The report of International Forum for Justice and Human Rights (IFJHRJK) documented the alarming figure of 355 civilian killings, including a 10-year-old boy, a pregnant woman and three PhD scholars in Kashmir in 2018.
About half a million Indian soldiers are deployed in the Muslim-majority state, where more than 260 people were killed only in 2017.
A brief timeline, detailing important events in the held territory are as follows:
January
Jan 15 – Just after 15 days into the 2018, at least five Kashmiris were martyred in a joint operation conducted by Indian Army and Central Armed Police Force (CAPF).
Jan 17 – The eight-year-old girl, Asifa, from the Gujjar community was abducted on January 10 from Hindu-dominated Kathua and her hacked body with signs of sexual violence was found on January 17 near a forest in Heranagar area of the district.
February
Feb 4 –A mob assaulted two Kashmiri students in Haryana state of India. Aftab Ahmed, 23, and Amjad Ali, 22, the students of MSc program in Central University of Haryana (CUH), were returning from a mosque after offering Friday prayers when a group of people ambushed and badly thrashed them.
March
Mar 18 – Indian occupational forces used Israel-made chemical substance to destroy houses and burn bodies of Kashmiri youth during cordon and search operations in the valley.
April
Apr 1 – Indian troops martyred 17 youth and injured as many as 100 in their act of state terrorism in Shopian and Islamabad districts of occupied Kashmir.
Apr 3 – UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres expressed concern over the killing of civilians in clashes with Indian forces in occupied Kashmir.
Speaking to reporters at the regular noon briefing at UN Headquarters in New York, the secretary-general spokesman, Stephane Dujarric, said: “Any loss of civilians needs to be investigated wherever they occur,” he said and added: “The Secretary-General is very concerned about the situation we see in Jammu and Kashmir.”
Apr 3 -In a brief statement on the micro-blogging site Twitter, former cricketer Shahid Afridi decried the “appalling and worrisome” situation in held-KashmirKashmir and the atrocities perpetuated by Indian security forces.
Apr 4 – The Kashmir conflict between India and Pakistan extended to a social media tiff between cricketers.Former Pakistani captain Shahid Afridi and ex-India opener Gautam Gambhir were seen having a Twitter exchange over their own version of Kashmir violence.
Media called me for reaction on @SAfridiOfficial tweet on OUR Kashmir & @UN. What’s there to say? Afridi is only looking for @UN which in his retarded dictionary means “UNDER NINTEEN” his age bracket. Media can relax, @SAfridiOfficial is celebrating a dismissal off a no- ball!!!
— Gautam Gambhir (@GautamGambhir) April 3, 2018
Apr 7 – Seasoned cricketer Shoaib Akhtar also raised his voice on Twitter, saying “I wish 1 day in my life time I get a news of Kashmir Palestine Yemen Afghanistan & all the troubled area of the world are free bcoz my heart bleeds for humanity & loss of innocent life ..”
Akthar also urged youth of both countries to stand up and question the authorities of both countries.
May
May 17 – The government in India-occupied Kashmir declared a conditional ceasefire in the territory during the holy month of Ramazan.
May 27 –The daughter of jailed Hurriyat leader Shabir Shah, Sama Shabbir Shah, topped the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) Examination, India, (CBSE-2018) in 12th class securing 97.8 percent marks, 489 out of 500.
“My father was a source of inspiration for me and my mother a source of strength, so that I was able to focus on my study. Every time this came into my mind that when my father has been fighting for 50 years (out of that 31 years he has spent in jail only) and he’s still strong and he’s still fighting then why will I not study and why not take it as a positive point to make them feel proud,” said Sama on the occasion.
June
Jun 14 – Indian Army Chief General Bipin Rawat during an exclusive conversation with The Economic Times, said that he supports dialogue to solve the ongoing problems in the restive valley, and to break the cycle of militant groups recruiting more Kashmiri youth.
“Talks must happen. The issue is that a lot of locals are joining militancy. We kill them and more would join. Infiltration can be controlled, but this cycle of recruitment of local youth can go on and on. So…let’s give peace a chance and see,” he said.
Jun 14 – The United Nations Human Rights chief called for a major investigation into abuses in Kashmir, as his office released its first-ever report on violations committed by India in the disputed territory.
ZeidRa’ad Al Hussein said he would urge the Human Rights Council, which opens a new session next week, “to consider establishing a Commission of Inquiry (COI) to conduct a comprehensive independent international investigation into allegations of human rights violations in Kashmir.”
Jun 14 – Unknown gunmen shot Shujaat Bukhari, editor of an English language daily Rising Kashmir,and his police bodyguard deadin Srinagar city of India-Occupied Kashmir.
Jun 19 –In an attempt to appear tough on militancy before general elections, India’s ruling party, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), withdrew from an alliance government in the India-held Kashmir.
July
Jul 10 – At the United Nations, Pakistan raised the Kashmir issue and called for effective new ways to protect children from atrocities committed by the Indian occupation forces in Jammu & Kashmir.
August
Aug 14 – According to Indian media reports, a group of Kashmiri students raised Pakistan flag and slogans outside Srinagar’s Islamia College of Science and Commerce to celebrate Pakistan’s Independence day in India-Occupied Kashmir.
September
Sep 26 –Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi addressed the Organization of Islamic Council Contact Group on Jammu and Kashmir on the sidelines of UN General Assembly session in New York.During his speech, the foreign minister said “Indian forces are not only killing innocent Kashmiris but their actions go unchecked as they enjoy ‘criminal level of impunity’ with India’s draconian laws.”
Sep 29 – Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi urged UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres to play his role in resolving the long-standing Kashmir dispute in line with the aspirations of Kashmiris and the UN resolutions.
At the 73rd session of United Nations General Assembly,Shah Mahmood Qureshi said,“The unresolved Jammu and Kashmir dispute hinders the realization of the goal of durable peace between our two countries. For over seventy years now, it has remained on the agenda of the UN Security Council and a blot on the conscience of humanity.”
Sep 30 – Indian troops fired shots at the helicopter of Prime Minister Azad Jammu and Kashmir Raja Farooq Haider from a border post, while he was travelling on a white civilian helicopter to Tarori near LoC to condole the death of brother of Chaudhry Abdul Aziz.
October
Oct 1 –United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres voiced grave concerns over the escalated worsening situation in India held Kashmir and urged the Indian government to proceed to negotiation table for the resolution of decades old conflict.
Oct 8 –Kashmiris boycotted the local government election conducted by Indian administration.
Oct 14 – Director General Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Major General Asif Ghafoor said the freedom struggle of valiant people of India-occupied Kashmir had entered into a decisive phase, who were giving unprecedented sacrifices to attain the ultimate success.“Pakistan is extending only moral, political and diplomatic support to IoK people, whose ongoing struggle for freedom from Indian occupation is indigenous,” he said.
Oct 22 – Prime Minister Imran Khan denounced the rise in Indian atrocities in occupied Kashmir valley while calling for India to solve the decades-old conflict through dialogue and according to the wishes of Kashmiris.
He wrote on Twitter, “It is time India realised it must move to resolve the Kashmir dispute through dialogue in accordance with the UN SC [United Nations Security Council] resolutions & the wishes of the Kashmiri people.”
Strongly condemn the new cycle of killings of innocent Kashmiris in IOK by Indian security forces. It is time India realised it must move to resolve the Kashmir dispute through dialogue in accordance with the UN SC resolutions & the wishes of the Kashmiri people.
— Imran Khan (@ImranKhanPTI) October 22, 2018
Oct 27 – President Dr Arif Alvi said the country pays homage to the sacrifices of its brethren in occupied Kashmir and reiterates its unflinching and steadfast moral, diplomatic and political support for the just cause of the people of Indian occupied Jammu and Kashmir.
Oct 27 – Supreme Leader of Iran Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and the Iranian nation observed Black Day to reiterate their support for the cause of people of Jammu & Kashmir through a series of events observed in several parts of Iran including, Tehran.
November
Nov 29 – Unveiling the real warmonger side of India, General Bipin Rawat threatened that Kashmiris should stay ready to bear harms caused by Indian drone attacks, adding, the strikes may go even beyond the Line of Control (LoC) towards Pakistan.
Nov 30 – Hiba Jan, the 20-month-old became an emblem of India’s devastating and highly contentious use of pellet-firing shotguns in Occupied Kashmir.
“As soon as I tried to open the metal wire mesh door to get out, a soldier outside fired pellets at us,” Marsala told AFP. “Instinctively, I covered Hiba’s eyes with my hand but pellets broke through the net and one lodged in her right eye,” she said.
December
Dec 5 – The consistency of Indian barbarism in held valley remained unchanged despite peaceful candle light demonstrations of innocent Kashmiris in the wake of Human Rights Week in occupied Kashmir.Nocturnal raids by police on resistance activists and people’s homes, ruthless beating and harassment of families of activists were carried out during Human Rights week in Kashmir.
Dec 12 –Bollywood’s movie Haider, whose plot revolves around the lives of people living in Kashmir, one of its actors, Saqib Bilal, a citizen of occupied valley, did a little cameo in the flick. On Dec 12, the fifteen-year old boy was killed by Indian troops.
Dec 20 – Prime Minister Imran Khan telephoned United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres to expressconcerns over Indian barbarism in Occupied Kashmir, “India is involved in serious violations of human rights in the held valley, UN should play its effective role for the solution of the decades long problem,” PM urged Guterres.
