MUZAFFARABAD: Clad in matching white T-shirts bearing Burhan Wani’s portrait, rows of young participants lined up at a bustling roundabout here on Wednesday morning before setting off on a “Run for Freedom” marathon as Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) observed the 10th death anniversary of the slain Hizbul Mujahideen commander as “Kashmir Resistance Day”.

Organised by Pasban-i-Hurriyat Jammu and Kashmir (PHJK), an outfit representing the post-1989 migrants from across the divide, the event comprised a rally followed by a homage ceremony and the marathon, drawing hundreds of participants to Burhan Wani Chowk in the AJK capital. A giant backdrop featuring Wani’s portrait alongside hundreds of photographs ofKashmiris wholost their lives to Indian repressive measures in the occupied territory dominated the venue, which was also decorated with Pakistani and AJK flags and banners highlighting the Kashmiris’ stance on their longstanding issue.Wani, who was killed by Indian forces in Kokernag on July 8, 2016, became one of the most recognisable faces of the armed struggle in occupied Kashmir.

His killing triggered months of widespread protests and clashes across the region. The participants arrived at the venue of the function ina rally through the city’s main artery, raising pro-freedom and pro-Pakistan slogans while carrying a large bannerreading:”Our struggle will continue till freedom from India.”

According to the organisers, 313 young participants wearing identical event T-shirts, bearing Wani’s portrait on the frontandan anti-India slogan on theback, stood in formation and saluted the Pakistani and AJK flagstothe anthems of both.

They also took an oath to renew their allegiance to the ongoing resistance to”overthrow Indian occupation of their motherland at all costs.” Among those attending the programme were PHJK Chairman Uzair Ahmed Ghazali, AJK Prime Minister’s spokesman Shaukat Javid Mir,Jammu and Kashmir Liberation CellDirector Raja Sajjad Latif, Usman Ali Hashim and several other refugee, political and social leaders.

Addressing the gathering, the speakers described Wani as a symbol of the Kashmir resistance movement and said his death had inspired a new generation of Kashmiris. They maintained that Wani had used social media to draw international attention to flagrant human rights violations in Indian-occupied Kashmir and to mobilise Kashmiri youth around the struggle for self-determination. The speakers said observing the anniversary as “Kashmir Resistance Day” reflected the resolve of Kashmiris to continue their campaign for the right to self-determination.

The speakers saidIndia should not remain under any illusion that it had suppressed the movement,addingthat hatredtowardsIndia amongKashmiriswas intensifying with each passing day.

They also called upon the United Nations to addresstheKashmir issueto help ensuredurable and genuine peace in South Asia. According to the organisers, at the close of the event, over 200youngsterstook part in the marathon, which began from Burhan Wani Chowk and ended at Rashidabad on Srinagar Road — a distance of 1.3 kilometres — where the first fivefinisherswere given cash prizes. Meanwhile, a seminar jointly organised by the All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC) and theJammu and Kashmir Liberation Cell (JKLC)at Kashmir House in Islamabad also marked Wani’s 10th death anniversary. Speakers, including former AJK presidents Sardar Masood Khan and Sardar Yaqoob Khan, AJK minister Nabeela Ayoub, APHC leaders Mahmood Ahmed Saghar, Farooq Rehmani, Altaf Hussain Wani, and former JI emir Abdul Rashid Turabi, paid tributes to Wani andothermartyrs of the Kashmir conflict.

The seminar expressed deep appreciation for Pakistan’s consistent political, diplomatic and moral supportfortheKashmiri cause . It paidtributeto Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir fortheir efforts towards peace and highlighting the Kashmir issue.

Published in Dawn, July 9th, 2026