ISLAMABAD: Pakistani Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar on Wednesday condemned “rising Israeli hostilities and aggression against civilians,” after Israeli airstrikes hit the densely populated Jabalia, Gaza’s largest refugee camp.

Israel sent its forces into Gaza following weeks of air bombardments in retaliation for a Oct. 7 attack by Hamas. An Israel Defense Forces (IDF) statement said the airstrikes on Jabalia had killed Ibrahim Biari, a Hamas commander it said was “pivotal” in the planning and execution of the assault. 

Over 50 Palestinians were killed in Tuesday’s airstrike, while at least 8,525 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza in Israeli attacks since Oct. 7.

“Yesterday’s air raid on Jabalia camp, where hundreds of lives were lost, including women and children, was a stark reminder of ongoing Israeli brutalities and war crimes in Gaza. Such reprehensible acts can never be condoned or forgotten. The world must act now to end this carnage,” the Pakistani PM said.

Pakistan does not recognize the state of Israel and calls for an independent Palestinian state based on “internationally agreed parameters” and the pre-1967 borders with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital.

Speaking on the floor of the Senate on Tuesday, Minister for Information and Broadcasting Murtaza Solangi reaffirmed Pakistan’s “firm support” for the Palestinian right to self-determination, Radio Pakistan reported on Wednesday.

“Pakistan has a principled position on Palestine issue and there is no change in it,” Solangi told parliament. “Israeli state cannot survive if the Palestinians are deprived of the two-state solution … there will be no peace without justice.”

In a telephone call with USAID Administrator Samantha Power, Foreign Minister Jalil Abbas Jilani “underscored the urgency of an immediate cease-fire in Gaza and safe passage for humanitarian assistance to those in need.”