Bukhari urges unity among Muslims as Kashmiris' freedom struggle enters a crucial phase

• "We must come together at this point in time" and extend full support to the Kashmiri people until they gain freedom from the Indian yoke.
• Turkish, Arab and Bangladeshi organizations, would participate in a demonstration in the last week of this month to voice support for the Kashmir cause.
• The demonstrators will also demand of the UN to implement its resolutions on Kashmir.

NEW YORK: The Prime Minister's Special Assistant for Overseas Pakistanis, Zulfi Bukhari, has urged US-based Muslim organizations to stand in solidarity with the Kashmiri people who are suffering under a repressive Indian military lockdown imposed by the "fascist" government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, an ultra Hindu nationalist.

At a meeting with the organizations' leaders representing American-Muslims from all over the world, he said that with India's August 5 action to annex occupied Kashmir, the long drawn out struggle of the Kashmiri people for their UN-pledged right of self-determination had entered a crucial phase.

"We must come together at this point in time" and extend full support to the Kashmiri people until they gain freedom from the Indian yoke.

With communications and internet cutoff, Bukhari said the misery of millions of Kashmiri brother could be well imagined.

The meeting was held on Saturday at the headquarters of Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA), a grassroots umbrella body, which, along with Turkish, Arab and Bangladeshi organizations, would participate in a demonstration in the last week of this month to voice support for the Kashmir cause and to protest against India's "illegal" move to scrap the special status of the disputed states.

The demonstration would take place on September 27 in front of the UN building on the day Prime Minister Modi will address the UN General Assembly.

The demonstrators will also demand of the UN to implement its resolutions on Kashmir.

All the representatives of Muslim organizations present at the meeting assured SAPM Bukhari that their members would join their Pakistani and Kashmir brethren at the venue in full strength and that the demonstration would be one of the biggest in New York City.

Zulfi Bukhari briefed the meeting on the grave situation prevailing in occupied Kashmir, and thanked them for their unstinting support.

At the same time, he said that with every calamity there is an opportunity, hoping that this new situation would be a stepping stone towards the liberation of Kashmir.

What was needed was unity of Muslim Ummah, he added.

Later at night, Bokhari would address a public meeting in Queens, a borough of New York City.