AFP KASHMIR BUREAU CHIEF IZHAR WANI IS NO MORE

Srinagar, Apr 05 (Only Kashmir): Izhar Wani, Agence France-Presse (AFP) bureau chief in Kashmir, who reported on the separatist conflict in the region for more than two decades, died Wednesday of cancer. He was 46.

A passionately committed reporter, he went straight into journalism after graduating from college and joined AFP in 1991, as the separatist insurgency in the Kashmir region was escalating.

For the next 20 years, he covered the conflict in difficult and often dangerous conditions, all the while maintaining a scrupulous impartiality that was recognised by all sides to the dispute.

As well as the insurgency, Wani reported on a number of major breaking news stories -- most notably the 1999 Kargil conflict between India and Pakistan.

A well-known and deeply respected figure in the Kashmiri journalistic community, he was also a much sought-after source of information and advice for the many foreign correspondents who visited the region over the years.

"Izhar's untimely death has robbed India and AFP of a great correspondent," said AFP Asia-Pacific director Eric Wishart.

"He showed tremendous courage in covering an extremely complex and dangerous conflict for so many years, and showed the same courage in his fight against cancer."

Messages of condolence also came from the Chief Minister of Kashmir, Omar Abdullah, and other senior Kashmiri politicians and journalists.
Editor-in-chief Bilal Bashir Bhat including whole Only Kashmir team expresses sympathies with the bereaved family. May he rest in peace (Ameen)

A devout Muslim and proud father, Wani is survived by his wife and two daughters.(OK)