Srinagar, A new report has shed light on the severe impact of the long-standing conflict in Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK), revealing that 915 children have been killed by Indian forces over the past 35 years. The findings were released on the International Day of Innocent Children Victims of Aggression, highlighting the broader consequences of the conflict, including over 107,960 children left orphaned.
According to Kashmir Media Service, the report provides a comprehensive look at the toll of the conflict from January 1, 1989, to the present. It documents the deaths of 96,310 Kashmiris, including children, at the hands of Indian troops. The report also details the injuries sustained by thousands, including schoolchildren, from pellets, bullets, and teargas shells used by Indian troops, police, and paramilitary forces.
The report further stated that many teenagers have suffered severe injuries, including loss of eyesight, due to pellet and teargas shell injuries since 2010. Additionally, numerous boys and girls under the age of 19 have been killed during military operations and alleged fake encounters. Many are also being held in illegal detention under stringent security laws in various jails across IIOJK and India.
APHC spokesman Advocate Abdul Rashid Minhas issued a statement in Srinagar, emphasizing the dire situation of minors in the region. He called on the United Nations and international human rights and child protection organizations to intervene to protect Kashmiri children from ongoing violence by Indian troops. Minhas highlighted the use of children by Indian forces as a “weapon of war” and lamented the brutalization of young lives in the conflict, describing it as a deliberate strategy by the Indian government.
He urged the international community to play a more active role in resolving the Kashmir dispute in accordance with United Nations resolutions and the aspirations of the Kashmiri people, stressing the need for a peaceful resolution to prevent further suffering and loss of young lives.