Baloch Leader ‘requests' support; slams UN's silence on Pak, 'Ready to take help from India…' - The Economic Times Video
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First Post
4 hours ago
- First Post
'Heinous crimes with utter impunity': India flags Pakistan's sexual violence in 1971 at UNSC
India has flagged Pakistani Army's organised sexual violence against women in East Pakistan (present-day Bangladesh) in 1971 at a discussion at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) on conflict-related sexual violence. Eldos Mathew Punnoose, the Indian Chargé d'Affaires at the Permanent Mission to the United Nations (UN), speaks at a discussion on conflict-related sexual violence at the UN Security Council on Tuesday, August 19, 2025. (Credit: Permanent Mission of India to the UN) India has flagged Pakistan's organised sexual violence against women in East Pakistan (present-day Bangladesh) in 1971 and over the decades in its own country at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC). The UNSC held an open debate on conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV) on Tuesday. Pramila Patten, the Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict, briefed the UNSC and presented the Secretary-General's annual report on conflict-related sexual violence. Eldos Mathew Punnoose, the Indian Chargé d'Affaires at the UN, flagged the 'utter impunity with which Pakistan Army perpetrated heinous crimes of gross sexual violence against hundreds of thousands of women in erstwhile East Pakistan in 1971'. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Punnoose further flagged Pakistan's use of violence against women as a weapon of persecution against minorities. 'As a matter of \ful record, this deplorable pattern continues unabated and with impunity to this day. Rampant abduction, trafficking, early and forced marriages, and domestic servitude, sexual violence and forced religious conversions of thousands of vulnerable women and girls as weapons of persecution towards religious and ethnic minority communities are reported and chronicled, including in the recent OHCHR reports. These reports highlight that the while acts by Pakistan are also validated by its judiciary,' said Punnoose. Punnoose spoke about Pakistan's record after Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, Pakistan's Permanent Representative to the UN, mentioned alleged sexual violence and forced disappearances in Jammu and Kashmir and accused the Indian government of being involved in these alleged instances. Punnoose further said, 'It is ironical that those who perpetrate these crimes are now masquerading as champions of justice. The duplicity and hypocrisy is self-evident. Mr. President, as I conclude, allow me to once again reaffirm India's unwavering commitment to root out sexual violence in armed conflict and support and assist survivors of such heinous crimes.' In the Bangladesh liberation movement, the Pakistani military systematically used sexual violence against women, including rape, as a weapon. Estimates suggest that Pakistani forces raped between 200,000 and 400,000 ethnic Bengali women and girls in 1971. Several thousands of women died by suicides after being assaulted. The Pakistani military also ran rape camps where women were held hostage for soldiers to assault them. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD General Tikka Khan of the Pakistani Army, infamous as the 'Butcher of Bengal', was the architect of the campaign that was formally called 'Operation Searchlight'. The campaign has been dubbed as a genocide as he and his successor, Lieutenant General AAK Niazi, clearly stated that they wanted to exterminate ethnic Bengalis, particularly non-Muslims, in East Pakistan. Conflict-related sexual violence on the rise The conflict-related sexual violence worsened last year as 25 per cent more cases were reported last year, according to the report presented at the UNSC by Patten. There were 4,600 reported cases of conflict-related sexual violence in 2024, marking a 25 per cent increase from the previous year, the report found. Patten stressed that this was a 'chronic undercount' as these were only the cases that the UN could confirm. Among verified cases, sexual violence against children rose by 35 per cent, with victims being as young as one-year-old, the report found. There were 21 areas in which verified cases of conflict-related sexual violence were confirmed, with highest cases recorded in the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Haiti, Somalia and South Sudan, as per the report. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD New areas in which conflict-related sexual violence was reported include DRC, Libya, and Israel-occupied Palestinian territories.
Time of India
6 hours ago
- Time of India
'We're going to find out': Donald Trump says Putin 'may not want a deal'; Moscow plays down summit talk with Zelenskyy
US President Donald Trump on Tuesday said that his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin , may not want to make a deal with Ukraine. "We're going to find out about President Putin in the next couple of weeks," he told Fox News, adding, "It's possible that he doesn't want to make a deal." The US president added that the Russian leader faced a "rough situation" if that were the case. Russia plays down Moreover, Russia played down talk of a summit between Putin and Zelenskyy after Trump renewed his call for a meeting between the two leaders to end the war. Trump pushed for a summit between the two leaders after he met Putin in Alaska last week and seven European leaders and Zelenskyy on Monday. On Tuesday, foreign minister Sergei Lavrov watered down the commitment after Putin on Monday told Trump that he is "open" to the idea of direct talks with Ukraine. Lavrov said that meeting with Zelenskyy have to be prepared "gradually, starting with the expert level and thereafter going through all the required steps." Talking to BBC, Russian deputy representative to the UN, Dmitry Polyanskiy, said that "nobody [had] rejected" the opportunity for direct talks, "but it shouldn't be a meeting for the sake of a meeting". According to media reports, Putin told Trump that Zelenskyy could travel to Moscow for talks, an idea Ukraine may not accept.
India Today
6 hours ago
- India Today
Shameful record since 1971: India shreds Pakistan at UN over sexual violence
India hit out at Pakistan at the UN after Islamabad alleged that women in Jammu and Kashmir were being targeted with sexual violence, sharply reminding its neighbour of its own "deplorable" track record of crimes against at the UN Security Council's open debate on conflict-related sexual violence on Tuesday, Indian diplomat Eldos Mathew Punnoos made it clear that Pakistan had no moral standing to lecture utter impunity with which the Pakistan Army perpetrated heinous crimes of gross sexual violence against hundreds of thousands of women in erstwhile East Pakistan in 1971 is a matter of shameful record," said Punnoos, India's Charge d'Affaires at the UN. He added that women and girls in Pakistan's minority communities continue to face abduction, trafficking, forced marriage and religious conversion even today. The country's judiciary also validates these crimes against women, Punnoos pointed out."It is ironic that those who perpetrate these crimes are now masquerading as champions of justice. The duplicity and hypocrisy are self-evident," he said. According to a 2024 report by the Sustainable Social Development Organization, Pakistan reported more than 24,000 cases of abductions and kidnappings, 5,000 cases of rape, and 500 cases of "dishonour" killings last year. Many victims in the Sindh province were Hindu minority girls forced into marriage and religious conviction rates remain abysmally low, below 2 per calling for accountability, Punnoos stressed that survivors need comprehensive support, from health care to legal aid. "Perpetrators of heinous acts of conflict-related sexual violence must be condemned in the strongest possible terms and brought to justice," he envoy also highlighted India's own efforts to tackle gender-based violence both at home and in global peacekeeping missions. India was among the first countries to contribute to the UN Secretary-General's Trust Fund for victims of sexual exploitation and abuse, he said, and in 2017 signed a voluntary compact with the UN to eliminate such crimes in Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India joined the circle of leadership on preventing sexual exploitation in UN operations. Punnoos pointed out that India deployed the first all-women police unit to Liberia in 2007 and continues to send female contingents to UN teams, he said, have been "tremendously successful in connecting with local communities and addressing gender-sensitive issues".Domestically, Punnoos said India has created dedicated systems to protect women, including the $1.2 billion Nirbhaya Fund for women's safety, a nationwide emergency response number (112), and Sakhi One Stop Centers offering police, medical, and legal support across districts."India has implemented a comprehensive domestic strategy for women's safety. It could offer insights for ensuring access to life-saving services and protection for survivors in conflict situations," he told the UNSC.- EndsTune InMust Watch
