In the backdrop of Israel-Palestine situation, the Kashmir leaders including the former chief ministers of erstwhile Jammu Kashmir held a meeting on Friday, raising their concern over what they termed as the grim situation in Palestine.
Sources privy to the development told the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO) that the meeting was convened by Member of Parliament and former J&K chief minister Dr Farooq Abdullah and was attended by Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) leader and former chief minister Mehbooba Mufti, NC senior leader and Member of Parliament (Retd) Justice Hasnain Massodi and CPI (M) senior leader Muhammad Yousuf Tarigami.
Tarigami while talking to KNO said that it was not a formally convened Peoples Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD) meeting, but Dr Farooq Abdullah wanted to convene a hurriedly called meeting today in which various issues were discussed particularly the grim and emerging situation in Palestine and relentless encirclement and massacre of people of Palestine.
“The participants expressed their concern over the catastrophic situation, unprecedented in the sense that never ever has it happened in that particular region before,” he said.
“There has been violence, there have been atrocities committed in the past as well, but this time it is harsher. The world community must raise their voice. We have urged upon the Prime Minister Narendra Modi that we (India) has a tradition to support in support of Palestinian rights, so we must raise our voice in support of the UNO resolutions, concern expressed by General Secretary, concern expressed by human rights commissions, concern expressed by WHO about the violations and war crimes being committed there,” he said while divulging the discussions that took place in the meeting.
“India as a big country must play its role so that there is a ceasefire and an immediate end to the ongoing massacre of the Palestinians,” he said.
Pertinently, the meeting was held this afternoon at Dr Farooq Abdullah’s Gupkar residence while no other members of PAGD were invited for the meeting, which started at 04:00 PM—(KNO)