‘PoJK Is Occupied Territory, Not A Country’: Activist's Audio Raises Questions Over Pakistan's Intentions | Exclusive

Published 17 June 2026 · world

‘PoJK Is Occupied Territory, Not A Country’: Activist's Audio Raises Questions Over Pakistan's Intentions | Exclusive Reported By, Last Updated: June 17, 2026, 14:08 IST

‘PoJK Is Occupied Territory, Not A Country’: Activist's Audio Raises Questions Over Pakistan's Intentions | Exclusive Reported By, Last Updated: June 17, 2026, 14:08 IST Shaukat Nawaz Mir said Pakistani military officials have privately said the country's control over the region stems from the 1947 tribal invasion & subsequent military intervention Rapid Read Activist Shaukat Nawaz Mir As Pakistan intensifies its security operations in Pakistan-Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK), a prominent activist has released a fresh audio message accusing the Pakistani Army of attempting to permanently absorb the region into Pakistan while suppressing dissent through force. CNN-News18 has accessed the latest audio message of Shaukat Nawaz Mir, a key figure associated with the Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC), who is currently believed to be in hiding amid an ongoing crackdown by Pakistani authorities. In the audio, Mir makes a striking claim. “PoJK is not a country but an occupied territory," he says, alleging that senior Pakistani military officials have privately acknowledged that Pakistan’s control over the region stems from the 1947 tribal invasion and subsequent military intervention. ‘They Told Us Kashmir Was A Dispute’ According to Mir, Muzaffarabad Sector Commander Brigadier Faiq Ayub recently told local leaders that “AJK is not a country but our occupied territory.

We occupied it by sending tribal men and the army. Now we are going to integrate the occupied territory into our various provinces". Mir, however, argues that such a position contradicts decades of Pakistani policy and rhetoric surrounding Kashmir. “For decades, you kept us engaged in the Kashmir dispute. Our people died, our houses were destroyed. We were told that Azad Kashmir was the base camp for the freedom of Kashmir and that the issue would be resolved through United Nations resolutions," he says in the audio message. “Can a diktat by a sector commander override all of that?" Protests Over Economy Turn Into Political Challenge The latest remarks come against the backdrop of widespread unrest across PoJK. The protests were initially spearheaded by the Joint Awami Action Committee over economic grievances including rising electricity tariffs, subsidy cuts, inflation and governance issues. However, intelligence sources say the movement has increasingly taken on a political character following the Pakistani state’s response. Authorities have launched a sweeping crackdown involving arrests, raids, internet restrictions and security operations in several districts including Rawalakot, Kotli and Neelum.