Pakistan says Kashmiris looking to world for help

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan

Pakistan on Sunday urged international news media to make greater coverage of Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir.

Firdous Ashiq Awan, prime ministerial special assistant on information and broadcasting, appealed to international reporters to support Pakistan's efforts to cover the Kashmiri issue across the globe.

"Kashmiris were looking to the international community to force India to end human rights abuses and grant the right of self-determination as promised by the UN Security Council resolutions and committed by the Indian leadership," she said.

Awan accused India of bringing Kashmiris under siege and denying them their fundamental rights since Aug. 5, when New Delhi revoked the special status, or limited autonomy, to Indian-administered Kashmir -- a region subject of dispute among India and Pakistan.

She announced that Feb. 5 would be observed as a day of solidarity with Kashmiris to raise awareness in the world about the ongoing situation in the region after it was stripped of its special status.

She reiterated that Pakistan would continue its political, moral and diplomatic support for Kashmir.

Kashmir is held by India and Pakistan in parts and claimed both in full. A small sliver of Kashmir is also held by China.

Since they were partitioned in 1947, the two countries have fought three wars -- in 1948, 1965 and 1971 -- two of them over Kashmir.

Some Kashmiri groups in Jammu and Kashmir have been fighting against Indian rule for independence, or unification with neighboring Pakistan.

According to several human rights organizations, thousands of people have reportedly been killed in the conflict in the region since 1989.