A prominent Kashmiri leader has called for the world powers' intervention to settle the decades-old Kashmir dispute, saying their inaction has given a sense of impunity to the Indian army as the force continues to unleash atrocities to suppress the Kashmir people's struggle for their UN-promised right to self-determination.

"The world powers must intervene to settle the issue of Kashmir not only for the sake of Kashmir but also for the sake of peace and security in the region of South Asia and beyond," Dr Ghulam Nabi Fai, Secretary-General of the Washington-based World Kashmir Awareness Forum, said during a webinar, organized by Legal Forum for Kashmir, Islamabad.

Among other speakers were former Pakistani Ashraf Jahangir Qazi, Justice Ali Nawaz Chowan and Dr. Mushtaq Ahmed.

In his remarks, Fai gave background to the deteriorating situation in the Illegally Indian Occupied Kashmir following India's unilateral action to end the special status of Jammu and Kashmir on 5 August 2019, the imposition of a tough military lockdown, the communications blockade and arrests of hundreds of political leaders and young people as well as killings of activists in fake encounters across the disputed state.

He also spoke about other illegal Indian actions, including granting of domicile certificates to thousands of non-Kashmiri residents aimed at changing the demography of the Muslim's majority region.

"You do not need to be an Einstein to understand: why this is happening? The Indians know it well that the people of Kashmir are not going to vote for India," Fai said.

Fai said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi India would like the world to believe that there is normalcy in Kashmir, but presence of 900,000 Indian soldiers makes the valley the most militarized place on earth.

"Today, Azadi is the catch phrase on the streets of the occupied Kashmir," he said.

India, he said, has intensified its atrocities in Kashmir under the cover of the deadly coronavirus pandemic that is engaging the world's attention. "Yes, world powers have not uttered a word against the human rights violations in Kashmir and by and large, world powers have remained silent. But they do not know that their silence, inaction and passivity has given the sense of total impunity to the Indian army in Kashmir."