New Delhi: UK-based activist and native of Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK), Jamil Maqsood, called India’s Operation Sindoor a “bold and precise” response to the tragic Pahalgam attack that claimed innocent lives.
Maqsood, who has long campaigned for the rights of people in PoJK and Gilgit-Baltistan, while talking to ANI said that the operation sent a clear message, not only to terrorist groups, but to the military establishment in Pakistan that has, in his words, “spent decades feeding the fire of extremism.”
“Pakistan has been a safe haven for terrorists for far too long, but this operation reminded them that the world is watching, and that India has the means and the will to act,” he said.
“This is a threat to the whole world, this is not just a threat to India. You see, all over the world, the big terrorist organisations, whether in Nigeria, Egypt, Libya or elsewhere, many of their operatives are trained in Pakistan. The training camps, the radical indoctrination, it all starts there. And when that becomes a breeding ground for global terrorism, it threatens international peace and security” Maqsood warned.
He further added, “But what will you do now? When a former Al-Qaeda fighter from Syria, once worth 10 million dollars in bounty, is seen standing with the President of the United States, what message does that send? This changing geopolitical reality becomes an encouragement to terror groups. It emboldens them. It disrupts the efforts of those who value democracy, human rights, peace, and good neighbourly relations. Every step we take toward progress is undercut by the forces that thrive on instability.”
Maqsood criticized what he called Pakistan’s policy of interventionism and support for extremist ideologies.
“While people like us talk about peace, Pakistan’s government takes groups like Hamas to Rawalakot. They support outfits like Lashkar-e-Tayyiba, Jaish-e-Mohammad, and Dargadal-e-Ansar, and try to forge a national alliance among them. This harms the policies of democracy, freedom, and human rights.”
Speaking about his homeland, Maqsood painted a grim picture of life under Pakistani control in Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK). “We’ve lived under occupation for 80 years,” he said.
“In all that time, we’ve been denied even the most basic human rights. There are no decent hospitals, people die from treatable illnesses simply because they can’t access proper medical care. Our children attend schools that are either grossly underfunded or used as breeding grounds for radical ideology. And as for free speech, there is none. The moment you speak out against the state’s policies or question its actions, you’re branded a traitor or silenced entirely.”
Maqsood accused the Pakistani establishment of systemic neglect, asserting that any development or investment in the region is strategically calculated. “Islamabad only invests here when it serves their agenda of hate. When they can use our land, our people, as pawns in their propaganda against India,” he said. “We are not seen as citizens with dreams or rights, but as tools to further a militarized, extremist agenda. The world must understand that the suffering in PoJK is not accidental. It is by design.”
He described Operation Sindoor as more than a strike, it was a signal to the international community. “India stood up. And in doing so, it stood up for us too,” he said. (With inputs from ANI)
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