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India extends unilateral Kashmir cease-fire by one month

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January 24, 2001 

NEW DELHI-- (AP) - The Indian government extended its unilateral cease-fire against Islamic militants in Kashmir on Tuesday, saying its troops will refrain from operations against the separatist guerrillas for another month.

The decision was made after a meeting of Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's security advisers and top Cabinet officials.

The cease-fire, begun in November and already extended once, was due to expire on Friday.

"Government believes violence must be ended,and peace, which has been welcome by the people of Jammu and Kashmir, given every chance," External Affairs Jaswant Singh told reporters outside Vajpayee's residence after the meeting of the Cabinet committee on security.

He said the cease-fire would be extended for one month, but did not give the exact expiration date.

The army had favored extending it, noting that attacks by guerrillas had decreased, although the Pakistan-based militant groups fighting to separate Kashmir from India or unite it to Pakistan had said they would step up their operations.

Cross-border shelling and small arms gunfire between Indian and Pakistani troops has also ceased.

However, some of Vajpayee's political allies, including the top elected official in Kashmir, had opposed extending the cease-fire, saying that the guerrillas had not halted their attacks.