The killing of Ilyas Kashmiri, the leader of Al Qaeda's dreaded 313 brigade, in a US drone strike on Pakistan's border has come as a shot in the arm of security agencies in India who had been grappling with the rising clout of the terrorist amongst the cadre, especially in Kerala. Vicky Nanjappa reports
Top Kashmiri separatist leaders on Saturday evening joined the iftar party hosted by Syed Ali Shah Geelani, the hard-line separatist leader at his uptown residence.
Pakistan on Wednesday brushed aside India's unhappiness over Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's Advisor on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz's meetings with Kashmiri separatists in New Delhi, saying such meets were "customary" and the Kashmir issue remains the "core dispute" between the two countries.
Dreaded terrorist Ilyas Kashmiri, one of the most wanted men in India for his role in various terror strikes, has been killed, according to media reports.Kashmiri was killed in a drone strike by the United States, BBC Urdu reported on Saturday.Kashmiri is the chief of the Al Qaeda'a 313 brigade.
Pakistan's caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar has included Mishaal Hussain Malik, wife of jailed terrorist and Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) chief Yasin Malik, in his cabinet.
The NC chief said the new generation of Kashmiris was fearless and were 'not scared of guns'.
Many political detainees have been released but former chief ministers Farooq Abdullah, Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti, who were whisked into custody in the early hours of August 5, 2019, are still in preventive detention.
Lashkar-e-Tayiba operative David Coleman Headley, who has pleaded guilty to charges of his involvement in the Mumbai terror attacks, would testify against his Pakistani handlers Illyas Kashmiri and Sajid Mir, a United States attorney has said.
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Sunday expressed regret that his government had not been successful in ensuring return of Kashmiri Pandits to the Valley, and vowed to regenerate a "sense of security" among them so that they willingly go back to their homes.
Harkatul Jihad al-Islami chief Ilyas Kashmiri, who was killed in a United States drone attack in Pakistan's South Waziristan region, had reportedly convened a meeting in North Waziristan last month to constitute a special squad that would be tasked with avenging the death of Al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden.
In the pre-scheduled meeting, the home minister reviewed the prevailing security situation in the Union Territory and steps taken to deal with the Pakistan-backed terrorists and maintain peace.
'Engagement should never stop.' 'Reassure Kashmiris that they will be treated at par with the rest of India.' 'The peace you crave will be peace with honour.' 'Your special status will not be tinkered with.'
According to a decision of the Union cabinet 3,000 additional government jobs and 6,000 transit accommodations will be provided to Kashmiri migrants in the valley.
'For the longest time, people even denied the Holocaust and called Schindler's List a propaganda, just like some are doing to Kashmir Files. Truth eventually triumphs, no matter what'
The Government of India has failed Kashmiri Pandits as they are still living as refugees in their own country. The state as well as the central government has not taken substantial measures till date for the return of Kashmiri Pandits back to the valley, says Varad Sharma
Wouldn't it be better to join the celebrations with the vast Hindu majority while at the same time criticising Mr Modi/BJP/RSS for politicising it? notes Shekhar Gupta.
Mumbai terror attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed led Jamat-ud-Dawah has set up various new fronts and established camps all over Pakistan to collect donations and sacrificial animals in the name of helping Kashmiris in India.
Al Qaeda has made jihadi commander Ilyas Kashmiri as its chief military strategist for the region to plan and spearhead terrorist attacks against the West.
Facing flak from opposition parties and separatists, Jammu and Kashmir government on Wednesday made a U-turn on the controversial plans for composite townships in the valley for displaced Kashmiri Pandits, saying they are "part and parcel of the Kashmiri fabric of life" and would be settled at their native places and "not as an isolated community".
Delegations of Kashmiri Pandit organisations on Friday met Union Minister Jitendra Singh seeking the Centre's intervention in allowing a pilgrimage to Kounsarnag Lak in South Kashmir, a day after locals had protested against the event.
Displaced Kashmiri Pandits on Tuesday staged a sit-in in Srinagar to protest the all-party delegation's visit to Jammu and Kashmir and raised anti-government slogans, prompting police to cane-charge and take into custody 114 people, including 15 girls.
Hard-line separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani had asked the non-Kashmiri work force to leave the valley after the rape-and-murder of 14-year-old Tabinda Jan in Langate area of Kupwara district in which 2 labourers were allegedly involved.
The Supreme Court on Monday asked National Conference leader Mohammed Akbar Lone to file an affidavit swearing allegiance to the Constitution of India and accepting the country's sovereignty, after the 'Pakistan zindabad' slogan that he allegedly raised in the Jammu and Kashmir assembly in 2018 kicked up a massive row.
Over 4,000 Kashmiri migrant families wish to return to the valley, Jammu and Kashmir government said on Sunday. "As many as 4,440 applications have been received from the Kashmiri migrant families which wish to return to the valley under the policy of return and rehabilitation of Kashmiri migrants," a Relief and Rehabilitation department official said.
The Bombay high court in its judgment granting bail to activist Gautam Navlakha, an accused in the Elgar Parishad-Maoist links case, has noted that there was no material on record to infer prima facie that he conspired to or committed any terrorist act.
'100 Fayazs will bring a change in Kashmir, that's why they don't want a Fayaz.'
Major opposition political parties and separatists groups in J&K on Wednesday slammed the move of the government to create separate townships for Kashmiri pandit migrants.
Kashmiri Pandits have impressed upon the central government that there should be no dilution of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act and nothing should be done to weaken the state's integration with the country. A group of Kashmiri Pandits met Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee in Delhi on Sunday night and apprised him of their views on the current volatile situation in the state.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday assured the country that the beginning of building a "new and developed Kashmir" that will be free from terrorism has been made under Prime Minister Narendra Modi and said that full statehood would be restored to Jammu and Kashmir at an appropriate time.
Pakistan on Thursday called Kashmiri separatists "freedom fighters", a day after Defence Minister Arun Jaitley asked the country to draw a red line and decide whether it wants to talk to government or those who want to break India.
Pakistan will continue to give diplomatic, political and moral support to the Kashmiri people until the 'core issue' of Kashmir is resolved even as it pursues cordial relations with India, Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf said Wednesday.
Al Qaeda terrorist Ilyas Kashmiri's role in India would largely depend on how Pakistan's ISI plans to use him, say Intelligence Bureau sources. Vicky Nanjappa reports.
The filing of sedition charges against 67 Kashmiri students by Uttar Pradesh police -- which were subsequently dropped -- has evoked a strong reaction across the political and social spectrum in the Valley.
Even as the Valley remains curfew shut, Kashmiris are venting their angst and spreading the word through social networking websites and blogs.
Throwing a BBQ party for family and friends? It's time to take detailed notes from the Mehrotras.
Addressing the congregation at the historic Jamia Masjid in old city Srinagar on Friday afternoon, the Mirwaiz said: "We will oppose all efforts aimed at fanning division of the Kashmiri Muslims on sectarian lines. If need be, we will expose the elements and institutions patronised by the government for the purpose."
A defiant Pakistan on Wednesday made it clear that it will continue talking to Kashmiri separatists despite India's protestation, saying that the "bottomline" for Indo-Pak talks on Kashmir issue was to engage all stakeholders and dialogue was not a favour by Pakistan to India or vice versa.
The telecom companies have billed the subscribers for the period of communication blockade which began on August 5 when the Centre abrogated provisions of Article 370 and split Jammu and Kashmir into two union territories.
Pakistan high commission sources said it has been an usual practice to invite the Kashmiri separatist leaders on such occasions.
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