NEW YORK: At the United Nations (UN), Pakistan stands firm in its principled policy of providing moral and diplomatic support to the Kashmir cause.

Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Dr. Maleeha Lodhi briefed the representatives in New York on the evolving situation in the backdrop of the grave human rights violations being committed in Indian Occupied Kashmir.

Lodhi also stressed the importance of an independent inquiry into the extra-judicial killing of the Kashmir Hurriyat leader Burhan Wani and innocent protestors.

She also highlighted the plight of unarmed Kashmiri civilians, killed, blinded and maimed by the Indian forces during her statement at the General Assembly in a debate on human rights.

According to Lodhi, the matter has also been raised during meetings with the UN leadership as well as with the President of the Security Council.

Earlier, Advisor to the Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz wrote a letter to the UN chief Ban-ki Moon, the President of the UN Security Council, the Secretary-General of the OIC, and the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to express Pakistan’s serious concern on the alarming situation in Indian-occupied Kashmir, drawing their attention to the brutal killing of innocent civilians and grave violations of the fundamental human rights of the Kashmiris by Indian forces.

Pakistan’s Foreign Office said it has approached the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) to send a fact-finding team to Kashmir to investigate the alleged human rights violations and atrocities of Indian security forces in Kashmir.

“We have requested UNHRC to send a fact-finding mission to Kashmir (in India) and probe recent killings of innocent Kashmiris,” Prime Minister’s Special Adviser on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz said.

In a press briefing here, Aziz urged the international community to take notice of the situation in Kashmir and extend its support to the Kashmiri people.

He also said that Kashmir cannot be considered internal affair of India as the United Nations has declared it a dispute and India itself made a commitment to hold the plebiscite to determine the will of the Kashmiri people.

The advisor also accused India of using “state-sponsored terrorism to justify illegal occupation over Kashmir.

“India will not be able to legitimise its occupation,” he said.