GENEVA: The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Contact Group on Kashmir, meeting on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, expressed concern on Wednesday over the deteriorating situation in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK).
Chaired by the OIC Assistant Secretary General for Political Affairs, the session reviewed the political and security conditions in the region, alongside reports of worsening human rights violations. Delegations from Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Türkiye, Niger, and Azerbaijan attended, joined by representatives of the Kashmiri people.
Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs, Tariq Fatemi, strongly criticised India’s policies, accusing New Delhi of tightening its “illegal occupation” through repressive laws, demographic engineering, and suppression of dissent.
He emphasised that durable peace in South Asia was not possible without a just settlement of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute. Fatemi also urged the OIC to pressure India to end its clampdown and secure the release of detained political leaders.
The Contact Group rejected India’s actions of August 5, 2019, and reiterated that local elections under occupation could not replace the Kashmiri people’s right to self-determination.
It further condemned restrictions on religious gatherings at Srinagar’s Jamia Mosque and Eidgah, as well as mass arrests of political activists and rights defenders.
The meeting welcomed the visit of the OIC Secretary General’s Special Envoy to Pakistan and Azad Kashmir, while stressing that incidents following the recent Pahalgam attack underscored the urgency of resolving the Kashmir issue for regional peace. It also warned that provocative statements by Indian leaders were heightening tensions.
Fatemi thanked OIC members for their consistent support, pledging that Pakistan would continue to extend political, moral, and diplomatic backing to the Kashmiri cause.
