In the first ever reaction to Israeli raid on Lebanon, Hurriyat Conference Chairman Syed Ali Shah Geelani terming it naked aggression, has called for a strike on Saturday.
"It's war on Lebanese people. It's Israel's naked aggression. America is stoking the war flames. UN has got suspended and what hurts more is that Muslim governments and their representative body, OIC are observing a criminal silence," Geelani told a crowded news conference at the Rajbagh headquarters of Hurriyat Conference.
Drawing a close parallel between Middle East and Kashmir, Geelani asserted that aggressors equally subjugate the people in Kashmir and Palestine or Lebanon. "There it's the combined operation of US and Israel, here it's India," Greater Kashmir quoted him as saying.
To a question about the relevance of Security Council resolutions on Kashmir in the face of UN's "shattered credibility," Geelani said, "Kashmiris have no choice but to stick to those resolutions as the fundamental basis of their case."
Geelani asserted that by virtue of being Muslim and "subjugated by the similar aggressor," Kashmiris ought to express their solidarity to the people in Lebanon and Gaza. For this, he called a general strike on Saturday and urged people to stage protest demonstrations on Friday against what he repeatedly termed as "naked aggression" of Israel.
"We have no options. We would certainly have sent our army to assist Lebanese in the defence of their sovereignty. But we can only express solidarity by staging protests and observing strike." The aged separatist leader also expressed concern over the likelihood of US strike on Iran or Syria.
Geelani is so far the only separatist leader having reacted on Lebanon war. Without referring to any particular individual or group, he asserted, "Whoever will remain indifferent to this issue will be committing a crime against humanity."
Geelani alleged that the recent operation in Bandipora was fake and the army had tried to roast alive a dumb youth after setting ablaze the houses. "You can quote me as eyewitness. Locals swore before us pleading there was no militant hiding there. Army tried to justify the operation by roasting the innocent youth so that they could dub him a militant later on," Geelani added.