MUZAFFARABAD, Pakistan // The top official in Pakistan-held Kashmir vowed to fight India for control of the disputed territory in a speech to thousands of people assembled by a coalition of banned militant groups.
The provocative comments by the prime minister Raja Farooq Haider Khan come amid the worst unrest in years in India-held Kashmir, which like Pakistan is majority Muslim. Residents have often chafed against rule by majority Hindu India.
Mr Khan's comments also come a day before India is scheduled to make its highest level visit to Pakistan since militants linked to Pakistan killed 166 people in Mumbai in 2008. The talks are meant to reduce tension between the two countries, but Khan's comments could do the opposite.
"Let me assure you that every home in Kashmir will become a bunker against India," Mr Khan told the crowd in the capital of Pakistan-held Kashmir, Muzaffarabad.
"Azad Kashmir will become a base for the independence movement," he said, referring to the Urdu name of Pakistan-controlled Kashmir.
The rally was organized by the United Jihad Council, a coalition of 12 anti-India militant groups. Many of the groups - including Lashkar-e-Taiba, which India blames for the Mumbai attacks - were started with the support of the Pakistani government in the 1980s and 1990s to fight India for control of Kashmir.
Pakistan banned the groups several years ago following pressure from the U.S. But many of them are allowed to operate openly, a fact that India says hampers improved relations between the two countries.
India has demanded that Pakistan crack down on Lashkar-e-Taiba and other Kashmiri militant groups, but many analysts believe the government continues to view them as an effective tool to put pressure on India.
The ability of thousands of members of banned militant groups to gather freely in Muzaffarabad on Tuesday was likely to reinforce that notion.
"Holy war is the only solution to our problem," said Syed Salahuddin, the head of Hizbul Mujahideen, which helped organize Tuesday's rally. "It is mandatory for every child in every street to wage war against India to bring it down to its knees."
Salahuddin rejected upcoming talks this week between the foreign ministers of Pakistan and India, saying they "are like sprinkling salt on the wounds of the Kashmiri people."
Pakistani Foreign Office spokesman Abdul Basit said he did not expect any breakthrough in the talks.
"We do not expect any dramatic results," he said in a Geo TV interview. "It would be a big success if a process of engagement is agreed."
India and Pakistan have fought two wars over control of Kashmir since their independence from Britain in 1947. Both countries claim the territory in its entirety.
Mr Khan, the Pakistani Kashmir prime minister, said that he would like to see normal relations between the two countries but doubted Indian intentions.
"India is not sincere," he said in a Dawn News TV interview.
Anti-India sentiment runs deep in Kashmir, where separatist politicians and armed Islamic militants reject Indian sovereignty and want to carve out a separate homeland or merge the region with Pakistan.
India-held Kashmir has been rocked by protests and strikes for the past month, and at least 15 people have died mostly in shootings blamed on police and paramilitary soldiers.
"Pakistan is committed to the cause of the Kashmiri people for their right of self-determination," the Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani said in a statement.
* Associated Press
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
How to apply for a drone permit
- Individuals must register on UAE Drone app or website using their UAE Pass
- Add all their personal details, including name, nationality, passport number, Emiratis ID, email and phone number
- Upload the training certificate from a centre accredited by the GCAA
- Submit their request
What are the regulations?
- Fly it within visual line of sight
- Never over populated areas
- Ensure maximum flying height of 400 feet (122 metres) above ground level is not crossed
- Users must avoid flying over restricted areas listed on the UAE Drone app
- Only fly the drone during the day, and never at night
- Should have a live feed of the drone flight
- Drones must weigh 5 kg or less
The Brutalist
Director: Brady Corbet
Stars: Adrien Brody, Felicity Jones, Guy Pearce, Joe Alwyn
Rating: 3.5/5
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
The language of diplomacy in 1853
Treaty of Peace in Perpetuity Agreed Upon by the Chiefs of the Arabian Coast on Behalf of Themselves, Their Heirs and Successors Under the Mediation of the Resident of the Persian Gulf, 1853
(This treaty gave the region the name “Trucial States”.)
We, whose seals are hereunto affixed, Sheikh Sultan bin Suggar, Chief of Rassool-Kheimah, Sheikh Saeed bin Tahnoon, Chief of Aboo Dhebbee, Sheikh Saeed bin Buyte, Chief of Debay, Sheikh Hamid bin Rashed, Chief of Ejman, Sheikh Abdoola bin Rashed, Chief of Umm-ool-Keiweyn, having experienced for a series of years the benefits and advantages resulting from a maritime truce contracted amongst ourselves under the mediation of the Resident in the Persian Gulf and renewed from time to time up to the present period, and being fully impressed, therefore, with a sense of evil consequence formerly arising, from the prosecution of our feuds at sea, whereby our subjects and dependants were prevented from carrying on the pearl fishery in security, and were exposed to interruption and molestation when passing on their lawful occasions, accordingly, we, as aforesaid have determined, for ourselves, our heirs and successors, to conclude together a lasting and inviolable peace from this time forth in perpetuity.
Taken from Britain and Saudi Arabia, 1925-1939: the Imperial Oasis, by Clive Leatherdale
A State of Passion
Directors: Carol Mansour and Muna Khalidi
Stars: Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah
Rating: 4/5
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League final:
Who: Real Madrid v Liverpool
Where: NSC Olimpiyskiy Stadium, Kiev, Ukraine
When: Saturday, May 26, 10.45pm (UAE)
TV: Match on BeIN Sports
Mia Man’s tips for fermentation
- Start with a simple recipe such as yogurt or sauerkraut
- Keep your hands and kitchen tools clean. Sanitize knives, cutting boards, tongs and storage jars with boiling water before you start.
- Mold is bad: the colour pink is a sign of mold. If yogurt turns pink as it ferments, you need to discard it and start again. For kraut, if you remove the top leaves and see any sign of mold, you should discard the batch.
- Always use clean, closed, airtight lids and containers such as mason jars when fermenting yogurt and kraut. Keep the lid closed to prevent insects and contaminants from getting in.
Director: Paul Weitz
Stars: Kevin Hart
3/5 stars
The%20Roundup
%3Cp%3EDirector%3A%20Lee%20Sang-yong%3Cbr%3EStars%3A%20Ma%20Dong-seok%2C%20Sukku%20Son%2C%20Choi%20Gwi-hwa%3Cbr%3ERating%3A%204%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
If you go:
The flights: Etihad, Emirates, British Airways and Virgin all fly from the UAE to London from Dh2,700 return, including taxes
The tours: The Tour for Muggles usually runs several times a day, lasts about two-and-a-half hours and costs £14 (Dh67)
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is on now at the Palace Theatre. Tickets need booking significantly in advance
Entrance to the Harry Potter exhibition at the House of MinaLima is free
The hotel: The grand, 1909-built Strand Palace Hotel is in a handy location near the Theatre District and several of the key Harry Potter filming and inspiration sites. The family rooms are spacious, with sofa beds that can accommodate children, and wooden shutters that keep out the light at night. Rooms cost from £170 (Dh808).
THE SPECS
Engine: 4.4-litre V8
Transmission: Automatic
Power: 530bhp
Torque: 750Nm
Price: Dh535,000
On sale: Now
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
Europe’s rearming plan
- Suspend strict budget rules to allow member countries to step up defence spending
- Create new "instrument" providing €150 billion of loans to member countries for defence investment
- Use the existing EU budget to direct more funds towards defence-related investment
- Engage the bloc's European Investment Bank to drop limits on lending to defence firms
- Create a savings and investments union to help companies access capital
Milestones on the road to union
1970
October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar.
December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.
1971
March 1: Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.
July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.
July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.
August 6: The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.
August 15: Bahrain becomes independent.
September 3: Qatar becomes independent.
November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.
November 29: At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.
November 30: Despite a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa.
November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties
December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.
December 9: UAE joins the United Nations.