You turn to us for voices you won't hear anywhere else.

Sign up for Democracy Now!'s Daily Digest to get our latest headlines and stories delivered to your inbox every day.

Tensions Mount over Kashmir as Pakistan Reacts to Revocation of Special Status

HeadlineAug 06, 2019

Tensions are mounting over the disputed region of Kashmir following India’s revocation of its special status Monday. Kashmir remains on lockdown, with internet and other communications blocked and leaders placed under house arrest. The status change would mean Hindu Indians from outside Kashmir could buy land and settle in the region, among other actions that will shift the demographic makeup of the Indian-administered, Muslim-majority region. Critics and many Kashmiris say this would threaten the state’s autonomy, further consolidating it into Indian rule.

Protests were held across Pakistan Monday as political and military leaders convene today to discuss the issue. Raja Farooq Haider, the prime minister of Pakistan-administered Azad Kashmir, issued a stern warning, saying Pakistan’s Army would defend the region and make “a graveyard for Indian soldiers” if “India dares to try any mischief” over Kashmir. Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan said India’s actions were a violation of U.N. Security Council resolutions, while the U.N. is calling for all parties to exercise restraint.

The original content of this program is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. Please attribute legal copies of this work to democracynow.org. Some of the work(s) that this program incorporates, however, may be separately licensed. For further information or additional permissions, contact us.

Non-commercial news needs your support

We rely on contributions from our viewers and listeners to do our work.
Please do your part today.
Make a donation
Top