Pro-Palestine protesters in Islamabad persist despite deadly car incident, urge stronger action against Israel

ISLAMABAD: Pro-Palestine protesters encamped in Islamabad vowed to stand their ground on Tuesday, as they condemned an incident involving a speeding vehicle that killed two people and injured four others at the site of their demonstration.
These protesters have set up their camps at D-Chowk in the Pakistani capital for the past several days. On Monday, a speeding car lost control and ran over a few demonstrators, killing two of them.
The driver of the car sped away but was later arrested by the police. However, the protesters said the incident did not dampen their spirits and they would continue to urge the government to do more about Israeli military actions in Palestine.
“I condemn it [incident] in the strongest possible terms,” said Tahira Abdullah, a human rights activist. “For the youth, all I have to say is, don’t be afraid. Come out in large numbers. The Government of Pakistan and the State of Pakistan does not listen to people who come out in small numbers.”
The war broke out in Gaza after Hamas attacked Israel on October 7 in response to the deteriorating condition of Palestinian people living under occupation. Israel suffered the deaths of more than 1,100 people, launching a retaliatory offensive, widely viewed as disproportionate, in which at least 35,456 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have lost their lives.
The protesters said the Palestine issue was close to their hearts and they would continue to raise their voice about it.
“Apart from my university and my professional degree, this is the most important thing,” Asad Ullah, a student, told Arab News.
“That [education and job] can happen any time, but the most important thing for me right now is making people aware about what is happening in Gaza and Palestine, what is happening to Palestinians.”
Rabail Shahid, another student, criticized the government for failing to provide security to the protesters in Islamabad.
“This incident happened here, I cannot even imagine, and [that too] in the Red Zone, in this Red Zone, which is a highly, strictly secured area,” she said.
Majority of the protesters said they wanted the government to take “immediate and effective steps” for the people of Gaza.
Some of them suggested the government must demarch the envoys of the countries supporting Israel and pursue the genocide case against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s administration at the International Court of Justice.
“We feel that the State of Pakistan and the Government of Pakistan should do far more than it has been doing till now,” said lawyer Humaira Masihuddin.
Pakistan does not recognize Israel and supports an independent Palestinian state based on pre-1967 borders, with Jerusalem as its capital.
In recent months, the South Asian country has repeatedly raised the issue of Israel’s war in Gaza at the United Nations through its permanent representative, Ambassador Munir Akram.