Pak special envoys to stress on ‘deterioration’ in Kashmir

THE CABINET SAID THE DETERIORATING SITUATION IN KASHMIR AND ESCALATION ON THE LINE OF CONTROL IS A “FLASHPOINT AND A THREAT TO REGIONAL PEACE”.

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan government said on Monday it will send special envoys to selected world capitals to highlight the “deteriorating situation” in Kashmir following a sudden spike in violence that resulted in 20 deaths, a majority of them militants.

Following a special meeting of the cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi to review the situation in Kashmir, an official statement said the government had condemned what it described as the “brutal and indiscriminate” use of force by the Indian forces.

The cabinet decided to send “special envoys of the Prime Minister”, including the “president” of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, to selected world capitals to “high- light the deteriorating situation” in Kashmir.

Hours before the meeting of the cabinet, Lashkar-e-taiba founder Hafiz Saeed had called on the Pakistan government to adopt a decisive position on the situation in Kashmir. In videos posted on social media, he said it was troubling that the govern- ment was not doing anything at a time when “Kashmiri youngsters are getting killed while waving the flag of Pakistan”.

“The Pakistan government’s silence is troubling, the government should immediately take notice of things and it should knock on all doors and raise the issue at international forums,” he said.

“The Kashmiris are calling out to Pakistan and the government should take immediate steps,” he added.

The official statement said the cabinet had condemned the suspension of communication services in the Kashmir valley and said such attempts to silence the voices of the Kashmiris “would never succeed”.