Thousands attend funeral of slain Kashmiri journalist

By Zahid Rafiq

SRINAGAR, Jammu and Kashmir

Thousands of people on Friday offered the funeral prayers for veteran Kashmiri journalist Shujaat Bukhari who was shot dead last night by unknown gunmen in capital city of Jammu and Kashmir, Srinagar. Two policemen who were guarding Bukhari were also killed in the attack.

Bukhari, 50, was buried in his hometown in Kreeri in northern Kashmir on Friday.

Bukhari was the owner and editor in chief of daily Rising Kashmir and three other publications. He was also part of Track II diplomacy between India and Pakistan over resolution of the Kashmir dispute and prevalence of peace in the region.

Bukhari was shot dead in Srinagar’s Press Enclave on Thursday evening while he was getting into his car. No group claimed responsibility for the attack, with the police blaming militants for it, who in return condemned the killing and called it the "work of Indian agencies".

Meanwhile, police also released a picture of three young men on a motorbike as the suspects for the killing. None of them has been identified so far.

Bukhari was, reportedly, earlier attacked in the year 2000, after which he was provided with security by the state government.

Kashmir, a Muslim-majority Himalayan region, is held by India and Pakistan in parts and claimed by both in full. A small sliver of Kashmir is also held by China.

Since they were partitioned in 1947, the two countries have fought three wars -- in 1948, 1965 and 1971 -- two of them over Kashmir.

Also, in Siachen glacier in northern Kashmir, Indian and Pakistani troops have fought intermittently since 1984. A cease-fire came into effect in 2003.

Some Kashmiri groups in Jammu and Kashmir have been fighting against Indian rule for independence, or for unification with neighboring Pakistan.

According to several human rights organizations, thousands of people have reportedly been killed in the conflict in the region since 1989.