Foreign Office Spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch says as the world observes International Women's Day on Friday, we would like to remember the strong women of Kashmir who have faced the brunt of Indian atrocities in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir.

At her weekly media briefing in Islamabad, she said the women in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir have endured widespread devastation and confronted obstacles that impede their access to essential needs and their capacity to lead a dignified life.

She said the Kashmiri women widowed and orphaned because of fake encounters by Indian forces do not even get time to mourn for their dead husbands and fathers and are forced to become the sole breadwinners for their families.

The Spokesperson said women heading households face additional difficulties in the society and face hurdles in finding respectable jobs.

Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said women activists including Hurriyat leaders Aasiya Andrabi, Naheeda Nasreen and Fehmeeda Sofi remain incarcerated in different jails of Indian illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir and India.

She said the Kashmiri women deserve to live their lives as they choose and enjoy their rights and freedom including the right of peaceful assembly and freedom of expression.

The Spokesperson said Pakistan will continue to extend political, diplomatic and moral support to our Kashmiri brothers and sisters for the just and peaceful settlement of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute in accordance with the UN Security Council resolutions.