Kashmir’s chief cleric Mirwaiz Umar Farooq on Friday accused the United States and Israel of attempting to reshape West Asia to suit their geopolitical interests and said that the recent developments, including the killing of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, had plunged the region into crisis and grief.
Kashmir's chief cleric and chairman of Hurriyat Conference, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, was stopped from proceeding to Srinagar's Jamia Masjid to lead the Friday prayers and deliver sermons.
The National Conference on Sunday decried continued disallowing of Friday congregational prayers at the historic Jamia Masjid in Srinagar.
The moderate Hurriyat Conference on Friday claimed that the Jammu and Kashmir authorities have gone back on their decision to release the Mirwaiz from detention.
The protest came days after Amit Shah took charge of the Home Ministry in the Narendra Modi-led NDA government.
Mirwaiz Umar Farooq has once again refused to comply with the summons issued by the NIA in connection with investigations in a terror funding case
Geelani said the desecration attempts by some masked youths was an attempt to connect the Kashmiri struggle for freedom with international terror groups.
The Mirwaiz had expressed anguish over the violation of the sanctity of the pulpit by a group of miscreants. "Such hooliganism that harms the mosque or misuses the name of Islam to spread anarchy and fear among people will not be tolerated at all," he said.
A spokesman for the Hurriyat said, "The phone call of Mehbooba Mufti condemning the Jamia incident which she is broadcasting in media for obvious reasons is quite ironical as it was during her tenure as Chief Minister that people were barred from offering prayers at the mosque most of the time."
A few masked youths desecrated the Jamia Masjid soon after Mirwaiz Umar Farooq delivered sermons during the Friday prayers
