On Sunday, acting foreign minister of Pakistan Jalil Abbas Jilani urged for international action to defend Palestinian citizens in solidarity with Palestine against Israeli persecution.
More than 300 Palestinians have died as a result of Israel’s retaliatory airstrikes in the Gaza Strip in response to Hamas’s “Al-Aqsa Storm” operation, which saw 5,000 rockets fired into Israel from Gaza and the subsequent infiltration of southern Israeli communities by armed men.
The unstable situation and the loss of priceless Palestinian lives also caused the foreign minister to voice his worry.
Pakistan requests international assistance to defend Palestinians against Israeli persecution
“The growing antagonism in the Middle East and the deaths of unarmed civilians gravely worry Pakistan. We demand an immediate end to the violence and oppression carried out by Israeli occupation forces in solidarity with the Palestinian people, Jilani stated on his X account.
In addition, the caretaker minister demanded the creation of a sovereign Palestinian state based on the pre-1967 boundaries and in accordance with UN resolutions.
Israeli airstrikes on Gaza since Saturday have resulted in at least 370 Palestinian martyrs, including 20 children, and close to 2,000 injuries, according to the Palestinian health ministry.
The army reported that tens of thousands of soldiers were deployed in southern desert regions close to the coastal enclave to rescue Israeli hostages and then evacuate the entire region within 24 hours. Israeli forces engaged holdout Hamas members and bombed targets in the Gaza Strip.
According to the Israeli military, senior military officers were among those killed in battle close to Gaza.
Ismail Haniyeh, the leader of Hamas, warned that the attack, which had started in Gaza, a small territory inhabited by 2.3 million Palestinians, will expand to the West Bank and Jerusalem. Israel has been enforcing a blockade on Gaza for 16 years.
Pakistan, who is “concerned,” asks for a stop to hostilities
On Sunday, President Arif Alvi denounced the abuse of Palestinian rights.
The president emphasized the importance of following UN resolutions while pleading with the international community to take action.
Without denouncing Israel’s usurpation and brutalization of Palestinian rights and people, progress toward peace cannot materialize. It is now necessary to proceed in accordance with UN resolutions. Today, the international community can make a significant contribution to world peace, stated Dr. Alvi on his X account.
A day before, as Hamas launched the largest offensive against the Israeli forces in years, Pakistan’s Foreign Office (FO) had similarly raised worries about the toll the recent Palestine-Israel war was taking on human life.
The rising bloodshed in the Middle East also saddened Caretaker Prime Minister Anwar-ul-Haq Kakar, who stressed the urgent necessity to “address the Palestine Question”.
“We call for prudence and the safeguarding of civilians. A two-state solution with a viable, contiguous, autonomous State of Palestine is necessary for long-lasting peace in the Middle East, according to the premier.
