End bloodshed in J&K, says Hurriyat

The All Parties Hurriyat Conference on Friday called for an end to the bloodshed in Jammu and Kashmir.

Hurriyat chairman Maulana Mohammed Abbas urged India and Pakistan to continue with the peace overtures even after the South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation summit.

"While we welcome the ceasefire on the Line of Control between India and Pakistan, but bloodshed within the state continues unabated, which should stop now," senior Hurriyat leader Mirwaiz said in a statement.

He expressed the hope that this year's SAARC summit to be held in Islamabad from Sunday would improve relations between all the SAARC nations and create conducive atmosphere to resolve all issues, including Kashmir.

"We appreciate the efforts by India and Pakistan to improve their relations. For the first time in 55 years, the countries seem to be serious about resolving issues and we hope that the will continue in the same vein after the SAARC conference as well," he said.

Mirwaiz said the amalgam's offer to hold talks with New Delhi and Islamabad separately was the 'turning point' in bringing about the change in attitude of the two countries.

"For 55 long years, India and Pakistan seemed not interested in resolving their outstanding issues. We had to look for ways to solve the issue on our own, hence the offer to hold dialogue separately with the two governments," he added.

He said the Kashmiri leadership will continue to play its positive role in the backdrop of peace efforts between India and Pakistan so that a solution acceptable to all parties on Kashmir could be arrived at.