LAHORE: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Friday chaired a cabinet meeting at Governor House in which top government officials condemned the labelling of slain Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani as a terrorist by the Indian government.

Federal Minister for Ports and Shipping Mir Hasil Khan Bizenjo told Dawn that cabinet members agreed all Pakistani embassies worldwide as well as the Foreign Office should register a protest against Indian atrocities in India-held Kashmir by submitting resolutions to the United Nations.

Members of the cabinet also decided to call a joint session of parliament to discuss the Kashmir issue, but a date for the session was not agreed upon, Bizenjo said.

The government also announced that Pakistan would observe a black day over violence in Kashmir on July 19.

Wani, the Hizbul Mujahideen chief of operations, was killed in fighting last Friday after Indian troops, acting on a tip, cordoned a forested village in the southern Kashmir's Kokernag area. Two other members of Wani's group were also killed in the gun battle.

Wani's killing drew tens of thousands to rise up and renew demands for freedom from Indian rule. Massive protests took place despite imposition of an indefinite curfew in most parts of IHK.

The death toll from clashes between Indian troops and protesters in the region rose to 34 as Indian forces used live ammunition, pellet guns and tear gas for crowd control.

Paramilitary troops and police in riot gear patrolled villages and towns in the region. Most shops were shuttered, businesses were closed and cellphone services were suspended.

Pakistan on Sunday condemned what it termed the 'extra-judicial' killing of Wani, Hizbul Mujahideen's chief of operations, by Indian government forces. Indian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Vikas Swarup asked Pakistan to refrain from issuing statements on the Kashmir unrest, terming it an interference in India's internal affairs.

In his early 20s, Wani was born in the southern town of Tral and was a teenager in 2010 when his older brother was beaten by troops on patrol near their home.

Shortly after, he joined Hizbul Mujahideen and eventually became the iconic face of Kashmir's militancy.

The son of a school headmaster, he regularly posted video messages online dressed in military fatigues and invited young men to join the movement against Indian rule.

Opinion

A state of chaos

A state of chaos

The establishment’s increasingly intrusive role has further diminished the credibility of the political dispensation.

Editorial

Bulldozed bill
Updated 22 May, 2024

Bulldozed bill

Where once the party was championing the people and their voices, it is now devising new means to silence them.
Out of the abyss
22 May, 2024

Out of the abyss

ENFORCED disappearances remain a persistent blight on fundamental human rights in the country. Recent exchanges...
Holding Israel accountable
22 May, 2024

Holding Israel accountable

ALTHOUGH the International Criminal Court’s prosecutor wants arrest warrants to be issued for Israel’s prime...
Iranian tragedy
Updated 21 May, 2024

Iranian tragedy

Due to Iran’s regional and geopolitical influence, the world will be watching the power transition carefully.
Circular debt woes
21 May, 2024

Circular debt woes

THE alleged corruption and ineptitude of the country’s power bureaucracy is proving very costly. New official data...
Reproductive health
21 May, 2024

Reproductive health

IT is naïve to imagine that reproductive healthcare counts in Pakistan, where women from low-income groups and ...