Pak plans to raise Kashmir issue at UN Human Rights Council, says Foreign office

Islamabad: Pakistan plans to raise the Kashmir issue at the UN Human Rights Council, Foreign Office spokesperson Muhammad Faisal said on Wednesday. Briefing the Senate Committee on Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan Affairs, Faisal said that consultation was going on various options including to use the forum of the UN Human Rights Council.

He said another platform available for Pakistan was to raise the issue in the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation's foreign ministers' meeting. Talking about the ceasefire violations along the Line of Control (LoC) by India, he said that the situation was dangerous and both sides were suffering loss of lives.

Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi on Wednesday held a telephonic conversation with his Norwegian counterpart Ine Marie Eriksen Soreide and discussed the Kashmir issue.

Qureshi urged Norway to play its role and impress upon India to ease the restrictions in Jammu and Kashmir. Foreign Minister Soreide stated that Norway would urge both India and Pakistan to deescalate the situation and ease tensions.

On Tuesday, Qureshi had said that Pakistan would take the Kashmir dispute with India to International Court of Justice. "We have decided to take Kashmir case to the International Court of Justice," he said, adding, "The decision was taken after considering all legal aspects."

Tensions between India and Pakistan spiked after India abrogated provisions of Article 370 of the Constitution to withdraw Jammu and Kashmir's special status and bifurcated it into two Union Territories, evoking strong reactions from Pakistan.

India has categorically told the international community that the scrapping of Article 370 of the Constitution to revoke the special status of Jammu and Kashmir was an internal matter and also advised Pakistan to accept the reality.