Istanbul: A global lawyers’ association announced plans to pursue legal cases in foreign courts against Indian officials accused of human rights violations in Kashmir, a move that could bring international accountability to decades of conflict in the disputed Himalayan region.
The Worldwide Lawyers Association (WOLAS) made the announcement Monday in Istanbul along with the release of a 95-page report titled “Longest Siege: Settler Colonialism and Structural Violence in Indian Occupied Jammu Kashmir.” The group said it will use the legal doctrine of universal jurisdiction to seek accountability in courts outside India.
“This report is not actually an end result, but the beginning of a legal operation,” WOLAS Chairman Enes Kafadar said at a press conference.
Kafadar said the report documents the use of Israeli-made Heron drones, Tavor rifles, and Pegasus spyware in Kashmir. He said witness statements submitted to the UK Metropolitan Police War Crimes Unit allege Israeli officials were present at interrogation and torture centers in the region.
“We publicly announce that we are also pursuing the same legal mechanism against Indian military and civilian officials who committed crimes of torture, demolition with explosives, arbitrary executions, and demographic displacement in Kashmir,” he said.
The report claims India has imposed 890 federal laws on the region, repealed 205 local laws, and amended 130 others since revoking Kashmir’s special autonomous status in 2019. Approximately 2.5 million new voters, a 30% increase, were added to electoral rolls in 2022.
No military officer has been prosecuted in civilian courts in 36 years under the Armed Forces Special Powers Act, WOLAS said. Between 2019 and 2026, 26,129 arbitrary detentions were recorded, with conviction rates below 1%. By September 2026, 4,249 books had been removed from circulation. Archives of local newspapers and human rights organizations have been seized. Eid prayers at Srinagar’s central Friday Mosque and Eidgah have been blocked for eight consecutive years.
Kafadar said new residency laws breach the Fourth Geneva Convention by granting outsiders property rights that could reduce Kashmiris to a minority.
WOLAS Board member Hasan Basri Bulbul called for seven measures, including an independent UN commission of inquiry, targeted sanctions, an advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice, and a permanent Peoples’ Tribunal.
Kashmir has been disputed since 1947. India and Pakistan each administer portions and both claim the territory in full. China controls a section known as Aksai Chin. Rebel Kashmiris have fought Indian rule since 1989, and tens of thousands have died.
New Delhi has not yet responded to the report.
