Since Tuesday evening, WhatApp users in Kashmir have been receiving a 5.38-minute video message from 21-year-old Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani calling for youth to join his militant outfit and boycott India.
The video, which seems to have been shot on a cellphone, features Wani and two other militants holding Kalashnikovs. The young commander is also holding a copy of the Quran and a pistol.
“We have come to you as you know oppression continues in Kashmir, and we have raised our voice, picked guns against this oppression,” Wani says. “To suppress this voice, our struggle, India continues its attempts and conspiracies. In which, with Allah’s grace and the support of Kashmiri people, our brothers, India has to face defeat.”
Since July, photos of Wani and his associates have been circulating on social media, to the consternation of the authorities. One popular image depicted 11 men brandishing their weapons, looking straight at the camera, without feeling the need to conceal their faces.
The police were so disconcerted by the image, they moved court to block all Facebook pages that had uploaded the photo.
Over the last four years, Burhan Muzaffar Wani has become the face of the new militancy movement in the Valley. Pictures of him have spread rapidly across social media networks. But this is the first time a video of his is in circulation. In his message, he urges:
A resident of South Kashmir’s Tral area, Wani joined the Hizbul Mujahideen in 2010 after being harassed and beaten up by government forces, two weeks ahead of his matriculation examination, his family said. His elder brother, Khalid Wani, was killed in April 2015 on a hilltop in Tral after he had gone to see Burhan.
Not surprisingly, Wani uses his video to take a dig at the police force, noting that some Kashmiris have joined the force and have picked up guns against their own people. “They oppress our families and will do in future also, and we could do it too to their families,” he said. “But Shariat doesn’t allow us. We are here to fight for the chastity of their mothers and sisters too.”
He added: “They are told by officers to go and fight but they are the ones who get sacrificed during encounters. They should understand that the officers are making them do so for their own promotions.”
Social media has become an important tool for militants to gain recruits. The police estaimated that at least 77 homegrown militants are now active in the region, mainly in South Kashmir.
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The video, which seems to have been shot on a cellphone, features Wani and two other militants holding Kalashnikovs. The young commander is also holding a copy of the Quran and a pistol.
“We have come to you as you know oppression continues in Kashmir, and we have raised our voice, picked guns against this oppression,” Wani says. “To suppress this voice, our struggle, India continues its attempts and conspiracies. In which, with Allah’s grace and the support of Kashmiri people, our brothers, India has to face defeat.”
Since July, photos of Wani and his associates have been circulating on social media, to the consternation of the authorities. One popular image depicted 11 men brandishing their weapons, looking straight at the camera, without feeling the need to conceal their faces.
The police were so disconcerted by the image, they moved court to block all Facebook pages that had uploaded the photo.
Over the last four years, Burhan Muzaffar Wani has become the face of the new militancy movement in the Valley. Pictures of him have spread rapidly across social media networks. But this is the first time a video of his is in circulation. In his message, he urges:
“We need your support and we are calling whole Kashmir to join us. Even if you can’t join us but with all your skills support us completely.
We are in this struggle, after leaving every comfort, our families, our homes, only to establish Khilafah in Kashmir, in whole world. We are warning all the young boys and girls who have become police and army informers that they should stop, else they will be killed.”
A resident of South Kashmir’s Tral area, Wani joined the Hizbul Mujahideen in 2010 after being harassed and beaten up by government forces, two weeks ahead of his matriculation examination, his family said. His elder brother, Khalid Wani, was killed in April 2015 on a hilltop in Tral after he had gone to see Burhan.
Not surprisingly, Wani uses his video to take a dig at the police force, noting that some Kashmiris have joined the force and have picked up guns against their own people. “They oppress our families and will do in future also, and we could do it too to their families,” he said. “But Shariat doesn’t allow us. We are here to fight for the chastity of their mothers and sisters too.”
He added: “They are told by officers to go and fight but they are the ones who get sacrificed during encounters. They should understand that the officers are making them do so for their own promotions.”
Social media has become an important tool for militants to gain recruits. The police estaimated that at least 77 homegrown militants are now active in the region, mainly in South Kashmir.
