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NEW DELHI (AFP) - The Hizbul Mujahideen threatened Sunday to induct freshly trained Islamists, bolster its armory and escalate its bloody campaign against Indian rule in Kashmir. The opposition group, which walked out of a truce in August, also renewed its offer for talks with India but maintained that Pakistan must be included in any negotiations on the disputed territory. "The outfit at present has plans to intensify actions against security forces in Kashmir and other parts of the country," Hizbul commander Assad Yazdani told the Press Trust of India (PTI). He also said his group would "increase the number of skilled militants, acquire more sophisticated weapons and at the same time garner public support." Yazdani, a senior Hizbul strategist, said a universally accepted ceasefire in Kashmir could be reached, provided India agreed to include Pakistan in the talks. "Let India respond positively first," Yazdani said. "The future ceasefire will be an absolute one, and every outfit operating in the [Kashmir] valley will abide by it." Yazdani participated in talks after the botched ceasefire offered by Hizbul on July 24th. Hizbul's Pakistan-based chief Syed Salahudin revoked the ceasefire on August 8th, citing Indian intransigence over demands that Pakistan be involved in the talks. Yazdani said fresh talks could start immediately if India agreed to the pre-conditions. "Yes, we are ready - even for bilateral talks with India provided final settlement of [the] Kashmir imbroglio is through tripartite agreement," he said. Yazdani added, "Pakistan, being a party to the issue, ... cannot be sidelined." Yazdani said Hizbul would "take into confidence all militant groups" before offering a fresh ceasefire in Kashmir. The Islamist commander also said foreign Islamists fighting Indian forces in Kashmir would also accept a Hizbul-sponsored ceasefire provided New Delhi softened its stand. The Muslim separatist struggle to establish an independent Islamic state in the Indian part of Kashmir has claimed some 34,000 lives since 1989. India, which controls the southern two-thirds of Kashmir, accuses Pakistan of arming and training Kashmiri separatists, a charge Islamabad denied. Meanwhile Indian and Pakistani troops exchanged heavy artillery fire overnight in Kashmir, killing 10 Islamists fighting for an independent Kashmiri Islamic state and a Muslim boy in the disputed region. The clash occurred at the border in the southern Kashmiri district of Poonch, a police spokesperson said, adding the two sides used machine guns in the fighting, possibly the most fierce in the region in recent days. India, which controls the southern two-thirds of Kashmir, accuses Pakistan of arming and training Kashmiri separatists, a charge Islamabad denied. The two countries have fought two of their three wars over Kashmir since 1947. |
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