Al Qaeda chief Ayman al-Zawahiri has reportedly urged "Mujahideen in Kashmir" to inflict "unrelenting blows" on the Indian Army and the Jammu and Kashmir government. According to the Foundation for Defence of Democracies' Long War Journal, his message was released in a video by Al Qaeda's media wing.
The 14-minute video, titled 'Don't Forget Kashmir', also highlights Pakistan's involvement in fuelling cross-border terrorism in J&K.
The FDD Long War Journal says Al Qaeda has been grooming an upstart group to wage jihad against the Indian forces in Kashmir, reports ANI.
"(I am)of the view that the Mujahideen in Kashmir - at this stage at least- should single-mindedly focus on inflicting unrelenting blows on the Indian Army and government, so as to bleed the Indian economy and make India suffer sustained losses in manpower and equipment," said Zawahiri.
As Zawahiri spoke on Kashmir, the video flashed a picture of Zakir Musa. However, Zawahiri did not take Zakir Musa's name. Zakir Musa, the founder of the Indian cell of the Al Qaeda titled Ansar Ghazwat-ul-Hind, was killed by security personnel.
In his message, Zawahiri referred to the Pakistani government and army and as "toadies of America".
Zawahiri said that the Pakistani army and government are interested in exploiting the mujahideen for specific political objectives. The terror group's chief further went on to allege that Pakistan's conflict with India is essentially a secular rivalry over borders managed by the American intelligence.
Zawahiri referred to the Kashmir conflict as part of the worldwide Muslim community's "jihad against a vast array of forces". He also called on "unnamed" scholars to propagate this point.
Zawahiri said, "You (the scholars) must clearly state that supporting the jihad in Kashmir, the Philippines, Chechnya, Central Asia, Iraq, Syria, the Arabian Peninsula, Somalia, the Islamic Maghreb and Turkistan is an individual obligation on all Muslims, until sufficient strength is achieved to expel the disbelieving occupier from Muslim lands."
Zawahiri also urges terrorists not to target "mosques, markets, and gathering places of Muslims" in Kashmir.
