ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar said on Monday Pakistan was “deeply concerned” about military escalation in Gaza and closely coordinating with OIC member states on the “fast deteriorating” situation as Israel carries out the most intense bombardment the enclave has ever seen, imposing a strict blockade, and preparing a ground invasion.
The Gaza Health Ministry said on Sunday 2,329 Palestinians had been killed since the fighting erupted, more than in the 2014 Gaza war, which lasted over six weeks. Israel says the bombardment is in response to a massive attack by Hamas fighters who stormed through Israeli towns on Oct. 7, killing 1,300 people and taking hostages.
Pakistan does not recognize the state of Israel and supports an independent Palestinian state based on “internationally agreed parameters” and the pre-1967 borders with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital.
“Pakistan is deeply concerned on the ongoing violence and loss of life in Gaza,” Kakar said on X.
“Pakistan is closely coordinating with OIC and its member states on the fast deteriorating situation in Gaza. Foreign Minister Jalil Abbas Jilani will attend Emergency Meeting of OIC’s Executive Committee on 18 October, and call for urgent action to alleviate the suffering of people of Gaza.”
The PM said Pakistan stood in solidarity with the people of Palestine and called for an immediate cease-fire and lifting of the blockade in Gaza.
“Israel’s deliberate, indiscriminate and disproportionate targeting of civilians in Gaza is against all norms of civility and in manifest violation of international law,” Kakar said. “The breakout of violence needs to be seen in the context of years of forced and illegal occupation of Palestinian territory and repressive policies against its people.”
The PM called on the UN and international community to open “safe and unrestricted humanitarian corridors” for the transportation of urgently needed relief supplies to Gaza.
Kakar’s statement comes as an Egyptian-controlled border crossing into Gaza is expected to reopen today, Monday, amid diplomatic efforts to get aid into the Hamas-controlled strip.
Hundreds of metric tons of aid from several countries have been held up in Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula for days pending a deal for its safe delivery to Gaza and the evacuation of some foreign passport holders through the Rafah crossing.
“Rafah will be reopened. We’re putting in place with the United Nations, with Egypt, with Israel, with others, a mechanism by which to get the assistance in and to get it to people who need it,” US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said after a meeting with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi on Sunday.
Blinken did not give a specific time for the crossing to reopen.
Veteran US diplomat David Satterfield, appointed on Sunday as a special envoy for Middle East humanitarian issues, will arrive in Egypt on Monday to work out the details, Blinken said.
