Separatists silent on Syed Salahuddin's `terrorist' tag

SRINAGAR: Kashmiri separatist Hurriyat Conference was quiet on the US designation of Hizbul Mujahideen's chief Syed Salahuddin as a global terrorist -a move that, by implication, dismissed their claim that violent separatism in Kashmir amounts to “freedom struggle“.

At the same time, United Jihad Council in a statement from POK said the Trump administration's decision to tag Salahuddin a “global terrorist“ was “mockery of international laws, the UN charter as well as the ground realities“.

“Salahuddin is a symbol of the legitimate freedom movement in Kashmir. The decision against him aimed at pleasing India... is painful and unfortunate,“ a council spokesman said. Meanwhile, the head of a Hurriyat faction, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, appreciated Iran's supreme leader Khamenei for extending his support to “Kashmir struggle“. But, almost everybody , including separatist as well mainstream politicians in Kashmir, refused to comment on the US action. There was no word even from usually voluble Syed Ali Geelani.