Islamabad:
Azad Jammu and Kashmir President Sultan Mahmood Chaudhry have called for international mediation and said his administration was preparing a humanitarian reaction in the event of further escalation between nuclear armed India and Pakistan.
India accused Pakistan of the April 22 attack, which left 26 people died, which Islamabad has denied.
“There is a lot of activity going on and everything can happen, so we have to prepare for it. These few days are very important,” AJK president told Reuters in an interview and called for rapid international diplomacy to step down the situation.
“We expect some mediation at this time from some friendly countries, and we hope this mediation will take place, otherwise India would do everything this time,” he said. Saudi -Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates could be able to mediate, he added.
Chaudhry also said he hoped that big players like the United States and Britain could also get involved. He said that activity along the control line (LOC) was “hot” and that Pakistan had shot two Indian drones down in the last few days.
There had been regular firing of Pakistani and Indian soldiers day and night, but so far there had been no loss, he said. Pakistan had also discovered Indian Rafale fighters flying near LOC, though they hadn’t crossed, he added.
The Indian Air Force did not respond to a request for comment, although an Indian military official said Rafale Jets did their usual training and exercises along Loc.
Chaudhry said he had not received notification of when and where India was expected to strike, but his administration worked with groups such as Red Crescent Society to prepare extra medical and food supplies in the event of conflict.
“Red crescent is working on it and we are working on displaced people in affected areas,” he said.
He said the international community also needed to pay more attention to Kashmir’s long -term future.
“I think this is the right time for the international community as a whole and the UN to play a mediating role in Kashmir,” he said. “It’s been a very long time and the people of Kashmir have suffered a lot.”
UN Secretary -General Antonio Guterres spoke to Pakistan and India on Tuesday and emphasized the need to avoid confrontation. The United States and the UK have also called for calm.
