Some reliable online sources disclosed that with the acceleration of the Kashmiri intifada, Indian security forces have used chemical weapons against the Kashmiri civilians in the Indian Occupied Kashmir (IOK) in violation of international law and Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Due to mounting causalities in IOK, Indian security forces have started giving collective punishment to Kashmiri civilians. In a development, on 4 July 2017, the Indian Army had destroyed houses in Pulwama and killed 3 Kashmiri civilians. Upon recovery of the bodies, it was discovered that they were burnt beyond recognition.
Sources report that the Indian Army is emulating Israeli tactics by using white phosphorus bombs to destroy houses of Kashmiris suspected of harbouring Mujahideen. The same tactics were used by Israel during its attacks on Gaza and it seems that these weapons have been provided by Israel to India for use in Indian occupied Jammu Kashmir.
In this regard, on July 6, this year, Pakistan’s Foreign Office spokesperson Nafees Zakariya during a weekly press briefing in Islamabad called for an international probe into reports that India used chemical munitions in held Kashmir against civilians.
He elaborated, “We call upon the international community, particularly, relevant international organisations to initiate investigations into reports about Indian forces in the Indian Occupied Kashmir, using ammunition containing chemical agents and precursors to kill Kashmiri youth and destroy Kashmiris’ properties.”
He cited the discovery of charred bodies of Kashmiri youth from the debris of five houses destroyed by the Indian forces at Bahmnoo and Kakpora in Pulwama, which had been burnt beyond visual recognition.
The spokesman claimed that more similar attacks had been committed by the Indian Army, adding, “If the use of chemicals in the ammunition is confirmed, then it would constitute a serious violation of international norms and India’s international obligations under Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC).
It is notable that a series of international treaties, specifically the CWC, prohibits the use of chemical weapons not only in international armed conflicts, but also non-international armed conflicts rather in all circumstances.
It is the first time that Indian security forces have used chemical weapons in the Indian controlled Kashmir.
@NHT