FO condemns continued closure of historic mosque in occupied Kashmir on last Friday of Ramazan – Pakistan
The Foreign Office (FO) said on Friday that Pakistan strongly condemned the continued closure of the historic Jama Masjid in occupied Kashmir’s Srinagar on the last Friday of Ramazan, calling on the international community to take notice.
In a statement, the FO said, “Pakistan strongly condemns the continued closure of the historic Jama Masjid in Srinagar on the last Friday of the holy month of Ramazan.
“Preventing worshippers from offering congregational prayers at one of the most revered mosques in the valley constitutes a serious violation of religious freedom and fundamental human rights in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir,” it said.
The FO said that for the seventh consecutive year since India had revoked the region’s special autonomy, occupation authorities had “sealed the mosque and barred Kashmiri Muslims from gathering for prayers on this spiritually significant day”.
“Such restrictions on religious practice, particularly during the sacred month of Ramzan, are deeply concerning,” it stated.
The FO called on the international community, including the United Nations and human rights organisations, to take notice of these actions and urge India to ensure the freedom to practice religion as a fundamental human right in the occupied valley.
Earlier in the day, occupied Kashmir’s chief cleric and Hurriyat chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq had said in a post on X that the gates of the historic mosque had been “locked from all sides”.
“On the last Friday of holy Ramazan, when tens of thousands gather from towns and villages for prayers and supplication at the historic Jama Masjid Srinagar, its gates have once again been locked from all sides,” he said.
“As Israel has forcibly shut the gates of Masjid al-Aqsa during Ramazan, similar painful reality is witnessed here. Our hearts bleed,” he said.
