ISLAMABAD: The Organization of Islamic Cooperation’s (OIC) special envoy for Jammu and Kashmir can help resolve the decades-old conflict between South Asia’s two nuclear-armed neighbors – India and Pakistan – by projecting the Kashmir issue at various international forums and engaging all stakeholders in a meaningful dialogue to find a sustainable solution to the dispute, Kashmiri leaders and experts said on Sunday.
The OIC appointed Yousef Aldobeay of Saudi Arabia as its special envoy for Jammu and Kashmir, besides extending its support to the “legitimate right to self-determination” of the people of Jammu and Kashmir in accordance with United Nations resolutions.
Since 1947, Kashmir, a Muslim-majority region with 86,000 square miles of territory, remains disputed between India and Pakistan. Both countries claim it in full but only control parts of it. The two nations have also fought wars over the territory, but the dispute continues to linger on.
“We hope that the OIC special envoy [on Jammu and Kashmir] will support and highlight the legitimate and peaceful freedom struggle of Kashmiris at all international forums and expose Indian atrocities against them,” Mushaal Hussein Mullick, chairperson of the Peace and Culture Organization, told Arab News on Sunday.
She said that activists and freedom fighters in Kashmir had been asking Muslim countries for years to appoint a global envoy who could amplify their voice internationally, adding it was “encouraging to see it happen finally.”
“The position of the special envoy is very powerful because it has the backing of all Muslim countries … and it also goes beyond simple condemnations and news reports highlighting Indian violence against unarmed Kashmiris,” said Mullick, who is also the wife of Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) leader Yasin Malik.
A final communique of the 14th summit of the OIC held in Makkah called for the establishment of a UN Commission of Inquiry to “investigate grave human rights violations [in Kashmir] and urged India to allow the Commission and other international organizations access to IoK [Indian occupied Kashmir],” Pakistan’s foreign office said on Saturday in a statement.
With 57 member states and a collective population of approximately 1.68 billion people, the OIC is the world’s second largest intergovernmental body after the United Nations.
“The OIC Summit gave a tremendous platform to Kashmir. We are lucky to have the world’s second largest multilateral organization take up the Kashmir conflict in such a robust way,” Ahmed Qureshi, a Kashmir affairs analyst, told Arab News.
Discussing the appointment of the OIC special envoy, he said that a difficult challenge awaited him as “he will be walking into one of the most difficult and protracted conflicts in the world today. But the good thing is that momentum exists and he can capitalize on it.”
Sardar Zaid Sajid, a Kashmiri human rights activist, also lauded the appointment, saying that the OIC focal person must try to resolve the conflict since it “poses a security threat to the whole world.”
“Both Pakistan and India are nuclear-armed countries and Kashmir conflict can trigger a deadly war between them anytime,” he warned, urging the special envoy to push the UN to hold plebiscite in Kashmir as per its resolutions.
OIC appoints special envoy to highlight Indian atrocities in Kashmir
OIC appoints special envoy to highlight Indian atrocities in Kashmir
- Kashmiri leaders urge special envoy to push for UN plebiscite in their region
- Analysts say the envoy will be dealing with one of the most complex and challenging disputes
Pakistan rejects Afghanistan’s ‘concocted’ allegations of training Daesh militants
- Defense Minister Khawaja Asif says accusations “attempt to shift the blame” of militancy on Pakistan
- Urges Afghanistan to dismantle “terrorist infrastructure,” prevent use of Afghan soil for militant attacks
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Defense Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif this week rejected “concocted” allegations by Afghanistan’s deputy minister of foreign affairs, Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanikzai, who accused Islamabad of arming and training Daesh militants.
In a statement this week, Stanikzai claimed Daesh has centers in Pakistan where Pakistan Army soldiers arm and train militants, and then send them to Afghanistan for subversive activities.
His allegations come amid tense relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan, with both countries trading blame over surging militant attacks in their countries.
“Pakistan categorically rejects baseless, concocted, and contrived allegations by Acting Afghanistan DFM Stanikzai, which are an attempt to shift the blame,” Asif wrote on social media platform X on Saturday.
The Pakistani defense minister said that as per the UN Monitoring Team’s report, over two dozen militant groups such as the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, Al-Qaeda, Daesh, East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM) and Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU) are operating in Afghanistan.
“The interim Afghan authorities are well advised to fulfill the assurances given to the international community by dismantling terrorist infrastructure and taking visible and verifiable actions to prevent Afghan soil from being used against other countries,” Asif added.
Ties between the two neighbors have been strained because of a surge in militant attacks in Pakistan’s western regions that border Afghanistan since 2022, after the breakdown of a fragile truce between the Pakistani government and the outlawed TTP.
Pakistan has frequently accused neighboring Afghanistan of sheltering and supporting militant groups that launch cross-border attacks. Afghan officials deny involvement, insisting Pakistan’s security issues are an internal matter of Islamabad.
The two countries also conducted cross-border strikes in each other’s territory last month in the latest escalation of hostilities along the border.
Pakistan commends OIC for empowering females during ongoing summit on girls’ education
- Pakistan’s deputy PM meets OIC Secretary-General Hissein Brahim Taha in Islamabad
- At least 150 dignitaries from 44 Muslim and other friendly states are attending summit
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar met the chief of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) this week to laud the inter-governmental organization’s efforts in empowering women, the foreign office said, as Islamabad hosts a two-day conference on girls’ education in Muslim communities.
Dar met OIC Secretary-General Hissein Brahim Taha, who is in Islamabad to take part in the International Conference on “Girls’ Education in Muslim Communities: Challenges and Opportunities.”
The global summit, which aims to find ways to advance girls’ education across the Muslim world, is being attended by over 150 dignitaries from 44 Muslim and other friendly states, according to Pakistan’s foreign office.
“Welcoming the OIC delegation to Pakistan, the Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister commended the OIC’s dedication and commitment to women empowerment and its unwavering focus on girls’ education in the Islamic countries,” the foreign office said on Saturday.
During the meeting, the two sides discussed Israel’s war in Gaza and the situation in the Middle East, Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir, Islamophobia, discrimination, violence against Muslims worldwide and the role of OIC in that regard.
“The DPM/FM commended the appointment of OIC’s Special Envoy on Islamophobia to help coordinate the work of the Organization and its Member States for addressing discrimination against Muslims all over the world,” the statement added.
The two-day conference resumes today, Sunday, and will see an “Islamabad Declaration” announced at the end of the conference that would outline decisive steps to transform girls’ education in Islamic countries.
Pakistan’s finmin departs for Asian Financial Forum to meet top Chinese officials, investors
- AFF brings together influential leaders from government, finance and business in the region
- Muhammad Aurangzeb will also interact with foreign media publications during the tour
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb has left for Hong Kong to take part in the Asian Financial Forum (AFF) 2025 where he is expected to meet top Chinese officials, financial experts and investors, state-run media reported on Sunday.
The AFF is the region’s premier platform that brings together influential leaders from government, finance, and business communities globally for ground-breaking discussions and exchange of insights on the global economy from an Asian perspective.
AFF 2024 brought together over 140 elite speakers from around the world and attracted over 3,600 visitors from more than 50 countries and regions, including over 70 overseas and mainland China delegations.
“Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb has departed for Hong Kong to represent Pakistan in the eighteenth Asian Financial Forum,” Radio Pakistan reported.
“During his visit, he will meet with heads and senior officials of major Asian financial institutions.”
The state media said Aurangzeb will meet Chinese and foreign officials, financial sector experts, professionals, investors and top businessmen during the summit.
These include the heads of China International Capital Corporation Limited, China New Energy Sky Rail Limited and Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, it added.
The Pakistani finance minister will also hold interactions with foreign media, which include speaking to international publications such as Bloomberg, Nikkei Asia and other media representatives.
His visit to Hong Kong takes place as Pakistan attempts to ward off an economic crisis that has drained its resources and triggered a balance of payments headache for the country over the past two years.
Pakistan has made some economic gains since 2023 by slashing inflation down to single-digit figures from a record high of 38 percent in May 2023 and registering gains in the stock market.
Authorities in Pakistan’s southwest order case against coal mine owners after methane blast kills 12
Authorities in Pakistan’s southwest order case against coal mine owners after methane blast kills 12
- The incident occurred on Thursday, with rescuers managing to retrieve four bodies from the mine filled with gasThe incident occurred on Thursday, with rescuers managing to retrieve four bodies from the mine filled with gas
- Provincial mining department says 82 workers were killed in 46 coal mine accidents in Balochistan last year
QUETTA: The government of Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province ordered the lodging of a case against the owners of a private mining company on Saturday after a deadly methane gas explosion on Thursday killed 12 workers inside their coal mine located about 40 kilometers from Quetta.
Rescue teams recovered four bodies of the miners on Friday, while the search for the remaining eight has continued over the past two days, with rescuers facing challenges retrieving the bodies from 4,000 feet inside the mine filled with hazardous gas.
In a notification issued on Friday, the provincial mining department directed the district administration to lodge a First Information Report (FIR), or police complaint, against the owners of United Mineral Company Sanjdi.
“An accident occurred on 09/01/2025, which killed twelve miners,” the notification said. “Therefore, it is requested to lodge an FIR against Sheikh Abdul Aziz and Hayat Khan, owners of the mine.”
Balochistan, Pakistan’s largest province in terms of landmass, is one of the most impoverished regions in the country, yet it is among the richest in terms of mineral resources, with gold, copper and coal mines scattered across various districts.
Many coal mines in the province are operated by private companies, often under lease agreements with the government.
These mines are notorious for hazardous working conditions and poor safety standards, where deadly incidents are common, and miners work deep underground without adequate safety equipment.
According to the Mines and Mineral Department of Balochistan, 82 workers were killed in 46 coal mine accidents in 2024.
“Following the request of the mining department, we are lodging an FIR against the mine owners of the private mineral company located in Sanjdi,” Saadi Bin Asad, deputy commissioner of Quetta, told Arab News.
New Zealand recall proven trio for Pakistan-hosted Champions Trophy
- New Zealand recall Kane Williamson, Devon Conway and Lockie Ferguson for upcoming tournament
- Key trio were unavailable for home ODI series against Sri Lanka due to offshore T20 commitments
Wellington: Seasoned players Kane Williamson, Devon Conway and Lockie Ferguson were recalled Sunday to an experienced New Zealand squad to contest the Champions Trophy one-day tournament.
The key trio were unavailable for the just-completed home ODI series against Sri Lanka because of offshore T20 commitments.
Batters Williamson and Conway have been playing in South Africa’s T20 league while pace bowler Ferguson is involved in Australia’s Big Bash competition.
Ben Sears was also selected for the ICC tournament co-hosted by Pakistan and UAE, having missed the 2-1 series win over Sri Lanka with a knee injury.
It will be the first senior ICC event for Sears and fellow pace bowlers Will O’Rourke and Nathan Smith.
Coach Gary Stead will oversee a squad he said also boasted experience and depth.
“We’re currently blessed with a lot of quality players and that certainly made for some challenging selection discussions,” Stead said.
Spin bowler Mitchell Santner will lead New Zealand at a major event for the first time, after being named full-time white ball captain in December.
Santner, former skipper Williamson and wicketkeeper Tom Latham were all part of the New Zealand squad for the last edition of the Champions Trophy, in England and Wales in 2017.
New Zealand will contest the tournament’s opening match against Pakistan in Karachi on February 19, followed by pool games against Bangladesh and India.
New Zealand squad: Mitchell Santner (capt), Will Young, Devon Conway, Rachin Ravindra, Kane Williamson, Mark Chapman, Daryl Mitchell, Tom Latham, Glenn Phillips, Michael Bracewell, Nathan Smith, Matt Henry, Lockie Ferguson, Ben Sears, Will O’Rourke
