EU DisInfoLab exposed India’s cyber war: Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Thursday, while strongly condemning India’s “reprehensible tactics”, said the publication of a report by EU DisinfoLab only substantiated Pakistan’s position in front of the International community.

Foreign Office Spokesperson Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri, at a weekly press briefing here at Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said India’s attempts to malign Pakistan had once again been exposed as the Report revealed a vast network of fake media outlets, think-tanks and NGOs serving Indian interests.

The EU DisinfoLab recently issued its latest Report titled “Indian Chronicles — Subsequent Investigation: Deep Dive into a 15 Year Operation Targeting the EU and UN to Serve Indian Interests”. The report is a follow up of the DisinfoLab’s 2019 Report titled, “Influencing Policymakers with Fake Media Outlets (An Investigation into a pro-Indian influence network)”.

The spokesperson mentioned that the report had previously uncovered the Indian propaganda body carrying out anti-Pakistan activities and cyber warfare against Pakistan led by the Srivastava Group of India and propagated by the Indian news agency ANI, since 2005. “India not only spread disinformation but abused international institutions in its desire to malign Pakistan,” he said.

Chaudhri said the Indian actors carrying out the latest malicious operation resurrected more than 10 defunct Human Rights Council-accredited NGOs registered with the names of deceased analysts and experts.

Also, India created hundreds of fake journalists’ identities, generated more than 750 media outlets and registered more than 550 fake domain names, he added. The Indian news agency, ANI, repackaged and amplified the malicious content produced in Brussels and Geneva, he added. “The Government of Pakistan views these mischievous activities of launching unsubstantiated propaganda as part of India’s pre-occupation with maligning Pakistan,” he said. Chaudhri said Pakistan had already put forth irrefutable evidence, extensively documenting India’s active planning, promoting, aiding, abetting, financing and executing terrorist activities in Pakistan.

He urged India to “eschew the use of false propaganda as an instrument of state policy”. “Such Indian ploys of spreading misinformation are doomed to fail,” he added.

The spokesperson said by spreading such falsehoods, India could neither cast a shadow on the international stature of Pakistan nor can divert the attention of the international community from India’s horrendous human rights record. “Instead of wasting more time in peddling falsehoods and fake news, India would be well-advised to put its house in order,” he said.

The spokesperson said Pakistan strongly condemned the arrests of Muslim youths in India under the newly promulgated discriminatory and inhuman law, which penalises members of religious minorities to marry as per their own free will.

“This law is further manifestation of the mindset of Hindu supremacist RSS-BJP regime, which takes pride in degrading and humiliating minorities, particularly Muslims in India,” he said. He added that Pakistan called upon the international community to take note of such steps by the RSS-BJP regime, which were fuelled by its hatred of the minority communities.

He said rather than giving in to the “fantasy-driven ‘Love Jihad’ allegations of its fanatic cadres”, the current regime should ensure protection of fundamental human rights of all of its citizens, irrespective of their religious affiliations.

The spokesperson said Pakistan, being a founding member of SAARC, attached great importance to the organisation’s success and reaffirmed its commitment to the objectives and purposes of its charter.

He said resolution adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on the “promotion of inter-religious and inter-cultural dialogue” was part of Pakistan’s global efforts to promote interfaith harmony, tolerance, respect for each other’s religions and values, and peaceful co-existence.

He mentioned that the resolution welcomed the Kartarpur initiative by Pakistan, referring to it as a “landmark initiative for inter-religious and intercultural cooperation for peace”.

With regard to recent developments in the Gulf region, he said Pakistan welcomed the progress towards resolution of the rift in the Gulf region and appreciates Kuwait’s sincere efforts for helping in promoting reconciliation among the countries in the dispute.

He said Pakistan hoped that enhanced confidence and understanding among these countries would foster durable peace and prosperity in the region.

On situation in Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir, he said Kashmiris were continuously subjected to a brutal military siege and inhuman restrictions for 493 days, since India’s illegal and unilateral actions of 5th August 2019. He said in a brazen manifestation of state terrorism, the Indian occupation forces on Wednesday martyred three more Kashmiri youths in Pulwama district of IIOJK.

“It is documented that 95,728 innocent Kashmiris have been extra-judicially killed by the Indian occupation forces in fake ‘encounters’ and staged ‘cordon-and-search’ operations since January 1989,” he said.

Around 7,155 of these innocent Kashmiris have been killed during illegal custody, he said, adding that during the same period, 161,163 civilians were arrested, 110,376 houses and structures destroyed, and 11,231 women were molested by the Indian occupation troops.

“The killing of innocent Kashmiris is a part of the Hindutva agenda of the RSS-BJP combine, which is attempting to target defenceless Kashmiris with mindless violence,” he said.

Chaudhri said afraid of the struggle of Kashmiri people for their inalienable right to self-determination — a right enshrined in international law and the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) Resolutions, the BJP government was desperately trying to malign the indigenous Kashmiri freedom movement.

He said having failed to subjugate the Kashmiri people, the Indian deep state has now started peddling “fake news”, alleging transfer of foreign fighters to IIOJK. “The completely baseless allegations and fabrications of so-called ‘foreign fighters from Syria’ serve only to further illustrate the virulent anti-Pakistan tirade that is the hallmark of the RSS-BJP dispensation,” he said.

The spokesperson said Pakistan called upon the international community, including the United Nations, human rights organisations and the global media, to hold India accountable for its crimes against the Kashmiri people.

“The world community must work for peaceful resolution of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute in accordance with the relevant UNSC Resolutions and wishes of the Kashmiri people for durable peace and stability in the region,” he said.