Pakistan calls for international judicial mechanism to seek ‘restitution, damages’ from Israel 

Palestinians check the damage in the al-Zahra school used as a refuge by displaced Palestinians following an Israeli strike, in the Shujaiya neighbourhood of Gaza City on August 8, 2024, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)
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Updated 09 August 2024
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Pakistan calls for international judicial mechanism to seek ‘restitution, damages’ from Israel 

  • At least 39,699 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s military campaign in Gaza since Oct. 7
  • Pakistan says will support all efforts to ensure peace in Middle East amid threat of wider war 

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has called for setting up a judicial mechanism to seek “restitution and damages” from Israel for its crimes in Gaza, the foreign office said on Friday, as Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar returned from Jeddah where he attended a special OIC meeting on Palestine.

Israel launched a military campaign in Gaza after Hamas carried out a shock, cross-border rampage into Israeli communities on Oct. 7, killing 1,200 Israelis and foreigners and seizing some 250 hostages, according to Israeli tallies. Since then, at least 39,699 Palestinians have been killed and 91,722 injured in Israel’s devastating air and ground war, the Gaza health ministry said in an update on Thursday.

In a press conference on Friday, Pakistani Foreign Office Spokeswoman Mumtaz Zahra Baloch briefed journalists about Dar’s participation in the Extraordinary Meeting of the OIC Executive Committee in Jeddah, convened at the request of the State of Palestine and Iran to discuss the ongoing Israeli aggression against Palestine and other regional states.

“Deputy Prime Minister underlined the need for the establishment of an international judicial mechanism, which would seek ‘restitution, damages and satisfaction’ from Israel for its crimes against humanity, war crimes and genocide in Gaza and hold accountable those responsible for their crimes,” Baloch said. 

The spokesperson said Dar had used the OIC platform to call for enhanced humanitarian assistance to Palestinians in Gaza, the opening of all access points of supply to Gaza and for allowing all UN and international agencies, including UNRWA, to operate fully in Gaza.

As Gaza’s war churns on, Israel has been battening down for another attack expected in the coming days following vows from Iran and Hezbollah to retaliate for the assassinations last week of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran and Hezbollah military commander Fuad Shukr in Beirut.

A relatively contained conflict between Israel and Hezbollah along its northern border, a spillover from the Gaza fighting, now threatens to spiral into an all-out regional war.

Baloch said Pakistan believed Haniyeh’s assassination in Iran — which he was visiting for the oath-taking of the new Iranian president when he was killed — was a “crime of aggression with flagrant violation of international law and a serious infringement of sovereignty, territorial integrity, and national security of the Islamic Republic of Iran.”

Pakistan warned that Israel’s actions threatened to undermine security and stability in the region, calling for “effective and urgent intervention” by the UN Security Council.

“So, I must underline, under international law, it is the responsibility of the United Nations Security Council to uphold international peace and to ensure that the region, especially the Middle East region, does not descend into violence and chaos,” Baloch said. 

“We believe Israeli actions against the Palestinians and against its neighbors is creating instability in the region. We also believe that a war in the Middle East must be avoided and Pakistan will therefore support all efforts to ensure peace in the Middle East.”


Relief for government as Pakistan top court rejects 2022 ruling on lawmakers’ defection clause

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Relief for government as Pakistan top court rejects 2022 ruling on lawmakers’ defection clause

  • Pakistan’s top court barred lawmakers in 2022 from voting against their parliamentary party’s lines
  • Ruling comes ahead of government’s move to table key constitutional amendments in parliament 

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s top court unanimously accepted a review petition against its 2022 judgment related to a defection clause in the constitution that barred lawmakers from voting against party lines in parliament, with the decision expected to bring major relief to the government as it plans to introduce a set of constitutional amendments in parliament. 

Pakistan’s top court ruled in May 2022 that votes cast by lawmakers opposed to their parliamentary party in four instances mentioned in the constitution’s Article 63-A would not be counted and the lawmaker found guilty of doing so could be disqualified from holding membership of parliament. These four instances include the elections of a prime minister and chief minister, a vote of confidence or no confidence, a constitutional amendment bill, and a money bill.

Pakistan’s ruling coalition government is planning on introducing a set of constitutional amendments in parliament that lawyers, opposition parties and independent experts allege are aimed at increasing the government’s power in making key judicial appointments and dealing with the defection of lawmakers during house votes. 

However, the government had deferred its move to table the amendments last month, admitting it did not have the required two-thirds majority in parliament required for their approval. Jailed former prime minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party has warned that if the Supreme Court struck down its 2022 ruling, it would pave the way for floor crossing in parliament. 

“I strongly condemn this, I just heard that the decision of [Article] 63-A has been issued,” former president and PTI leader Arif Alvi told reporters, shortly after a five-member bench of the apex court led by Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa accepted the review petition. 

“What was the need for this? They just want to pass these amendments through this fake assembly which was rejected by even Maulana Fazl-ur-Rehman, which can’t even pass a law let alone an amendment,” he added.

‘UNCONSTITUTIONAL AND UNJUST’ 

Khan’s lawyer in the case Ali Zafar had objected to the formation of the five-member bench and sought a meeting with the former prime minister in prison. 

Khan’s PTI has accused the government of attempting to grant an extension in tenure to Isa, who is widely viewed to be aligned with the ruling coalition and in opposition to its chief rival, the PTI, through the constitutional amendments.

The government denies these allegations and says the amendments are aimed at providing speedy justice to thousands of litigants in the country. 

Zafar later boycotted the court’s proceedings on Thursday, saying the ruling would open the door for “horse-trading” in parliament. 

Pakistan’s coalition government has criticized the Supreme Court’s 2022 ruling, with Information Minister Attaullah Tarar saying last month that it was akin to rewriting the constitution. 

Tarar had argued that no institution has the right to interpret the constitution as it pleases. 

“The Supreme Court finally admits its previous ruling on Article 63-A was unconstitutional and unjust,” the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party wrote on social media platform X. 

“They have corrected the blunder made by selected judges.”


Punjab bans public gatherings in Lahore ahead of rally by ex-PM Khan’s party

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Punjab bans public gatherings in Lahore ahead of rally by ex-PM Khan’s party

  • Khan’s PTI plans to protest against proposed constitutional amendments, demand his release from prison on Saturday
  • Protest demonstrations by Khan’s party in Mianwali and Faisalabad on Wednesday resulted in clashes between police and supporters

ISLAMABAD: The Punjab government announced on Thursday that it has banned public gatherings in the eastern city of Lahore for six days to maintain law and order, days before former prime minister Imran Khan’s party planned protest in the city. 

Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party plans to protest in Lahore on Saturday against the government’s proposed constitutional amendments, which the ruling coalition of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif denies are meant to suppress judicial independence, and also demand his release from prison. 

Section 144 is a legal provision that allows a ban on the gathering of more than four people on account of security threats. The Punjab government this week imposed the provision in Bahawalpur, Faisalabad and Mianwali cities in the province ahead of demonstrations by Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party on Wednesday. 

Social media footage showed clashes breaking out between Khan supporters and police, who fired tear gas to disperse the crowd.

“The Punjab government has imposed Section 144 in Lahore for six days from today to Tuesday,” state broadcaster Radio Pakistan reported. 

The state media said that political gatherings, sit-ins, rallies, demonstrations, protests and similar activities are banned under the provision. 

“The decision was made to maintain law and order and to protect human lives and property,” the state broadcaster said. 

The PTI is scheduled to hold another demonstration at the Democracy Chowk (D-Chowk) in Pakistan’s capital on Friday. The public square is situated near key government buildings in Islamabad, making it a place where political demonstrations and protests are frequently held. 

PREVIOUS PTI PROTESTS

The garrison city of Rawalpindi, bordering the federal capital of Islamabad, remained tense last Saturday as police fired tear gas shells to disperse hundreds of Khan supporters ahead of a protest in the city to demand the release of Khan, who has been in jail since August last year on multiple charges that he says are politically motivated to keep him and his party out of politics.

After a PTI rally in Islamabad on Sept. 8, over a dozen legislators from the party were arrested on charges of violating an agreement based on which permission for the gathering was issued, including abiding by a time limit and supporters sticking to certain routes to reach the designated venue for the rally on Islamabad’s outskirts.

Khan’s party says the challenges in holding rallies are part of an over-year-long crackdown it has faced since protesters allegedly linked to the party attacked and damaged government and military installations on May 9, 2023, after the former premier’s brief arrest the same day in a land graft case.

Hundreds of PTI followers and leaders were arrested following the riots and many remain behind bars as they await trial. The military, which says Khan and his party were behind the attacks, has also initiated army court trials of at least 103 people accused of involvement in the violence.

Khan, who has been in jail since last August, was ousted from the PM’s office in 2022 in a parliamentary vote of no confidence after what is widely believed to be a falling out with Pakistan’s powerful military, which denies being involved in politics.


Pakistan extends ‘full’ support as Israel bans UN secretary-general from entering country

Updated 03 October 2024
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Pakistan extends ‘full’ support as Israel bans UN secretary-general from entering country

  • UN envoy commends Antonio Guterres for “principled and courageous stance on situation in Middle East”
  • Israel has declared Guterres ‘persona non grata’ for not condemning Iran over Tuesday missile strikes 

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Thursday condemned Israel for its “unjustified and slanderous” attacks on UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and its announcement that it had banned him from entering the country over his failure to condemn Iran’s missile attacks earlier this week. 

Iran on Tuesday launched a salvo of missiles at Israel it said wefe in retaliation for Israeli killings of militant leaders and aggression in Lebanon against the Iran-backed armed movement Hezbollah and in Gaza. Fears that Iran and the US would be drawn into a regional war had already risen with Israel’s intensifying assault on Lebanon in the past two weeks, including the start of a ground operation there on Monday, and its year-old conflict in the Gaza Strip.

Following the Iranian airstrikes, the UN chief had condemned the “broadening” Middle East conflict and slammed “escalation after escalation” in the region but did not name Iran directly. Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz lashed out at Guterres, saying someone who could not condemn Iran’s attack on Israel did not deserve to step foot on Israeli soil. He said the UN chief would be remembered as a “stain on the history of the UN for generations to come” for what he described as his support for militant groups. 

“Pakistan stands in full solidarity with the UN Secretary-General and commends his principled and courageous stance on the situation in the Middle East, particularly the atrocities in Gaza and the aggression against Lebanon,” Pakistan’s ambassador to the UN, Munir Akram, said in an interview with state news agency APP.

“We strongly condemn Israel’s unjustified and slanderous attacks against the UN Secretary-General and the UN, which is a pillar of world order. Insult and abuse is the weapon of aggressors and oppressors.”

US State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller later stated the US believed Israel’s step to ban Guterres was “not productive at all” due to the UN’s role in the region. 

“One of the things we’ve always said that Israel needs to be cognizant of throughout this conflict is its standing in the world, and steps like this are not productive to improve its standing in the world,” Miller added. 


In Karachi, hot tiffin lunches, thanks to a centuries-old meal delivery service

Updated 03 October 2024
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In Karachi, hot tiffin lunches, thanks to a centuries-old meal delivery service

  • Thousands of tiffin wallahs deliver home- and restaurant-cooked hot lunches daily to Karachi’s office goers
  • Tradition comes from Bombay where service was launched in 1800s to cater to needs of growing working population 

KARACHI: Muhammad Hussain waited for the traffic light to turn green and then sped ahead into a busy artery in Pakistan’s southern port city of Karachi, with large bags slung from his motorcycle’s handlebars filled with steel lunch boxes called tiffins.

Hussain is among hundreds of tiffin wallahs who daily navigate the crowded port city by motorbike, and sometimes by public transport, to deliver thousands of hot lunches to Karachi’s vast working population.

Tiffins are mostly round, with up to four stainless steel compartments stacked atop one another and sealed together with a tight fitting lid and side clip. The separate compartments are perfect for accommodating multi-dish South Asian lunches, simple but often made of many moving parts: a spicy vegetable or meat curry, lentils, rice, yogurt, pickles, flatbread and sometimes even a sweet. 

The delivery of home-cooked tiffin lunches has its origins as a service for British colonial officers in India but turned into a booming business in the late 1800s to cater to a growing number of migrants moving from different parts of the country to Bombay — a crucial center of British imperial rule and bringing with them their distinctive cuisines and tastes. An Indian entrepreneur, Mahadeo Havaji Bacche, launched the tiffin distribution business in Bombay in 1890 to meet the culinary needs of this rapidly growing working population whose members had to leave early in the morning for work and would often go hungry for lunch. 

Today, even with the advent of fast food joints and delivery services like FoodPanda, the middle-classes of Karachi, much like Bombay, remain skeptical of “outside” food and prefer their lunches homecooked.

“This started in India, the tiffin service is operating there,” Muhammad Ibrahim Abu, 60, a retired tiffin wallah who was in the business for three decades, told Arab News earlier this month. 

“Since we migrated from there [to Pakistan], we thought why not start this work in Pakistan? So, we started it in Pakistan and praise be to god, it has been running successfully.”

Indeed, the tiffin wallahs have loyal customers all over Karachi, with many students and office goers preferring the taste of home-prepared meals to takeouts.

“We get home-cooked meals while sitting in the office, and secondly it carries the same homemade taste,” local trader Muhammad Irfan, 42, told Arab News as he unclasped a just-delivered tiffin and poured egg curry into a white plate from one of its containers. A group of four of his colleagues gathered around the food and began the shared meal. 

Muhammad Hussain can serve up to 150 customers like Irfan in one day, he told Arab News as he started his deliveries one cool October morning this week. 

“Our kitchen, catering work starts after 8:30am or 8:45am and by approximately 11am, we begin filling the tiffins and from 11:00am to around 12:30pm, we head out for deliveries,” the tiffin wallah explained. 

By around 330pm, his deliveries are done and he is ready to pick up empty tiffins. 

“By the time we have everything settled, it’s evening.”

Hussain charges Rs520 ($1.87) for a regular tiffin, which serves three to four people while a larger tiffin that serves up to six people costs Rs780 ($2.81). The prices are at least three times less than what it would cost to have a simple meal at a street side dhaba. 

But what’s on the menu?

“We cook two dishes every day,” Hussain said. “We prepare one meat dish and one vegetable dish.”

A range of items is on offer: chicken korma, chicken roast, chicken karahi, achari chicken, a curry of egg and onions, chickpeas cooked in masalas, lentils, moong dal, mixed vegetables, and fried okra.

“On Tuesdays, we have special lentils and rice and we also serve a separate chicken dish,” Hussain said. “And on Fridays, sometimes we have chicken biryani [rice], sometimes beef biryani, and at times chicken pulao [rice].”

His customers love the offerings. 

Muhammad Bashir, 30, an office worker, said there was a “significant difference” between the tiffin meals and those he sometimes ordered from restaurants near his office.

“This is home-cooked food, which is clean and tidy,” Bashir told Arab News. “Secondly, it has fewer spices, and the homemade flavors are great.”

Irfan, who was sharing his tiffin with four colleagues, said it evoked a “powerful feeling” of nostalgia.

“I’ve been seeing this since my childhood because in the school we attended, tiffins used to come for the teachers,” he said. 

But time has not been kind to the tiffin business, said Abu, the retired tiffin wallah who closed shop two years ago as surging inflation and a dwindling clientele dampened the business. 

“I started with just five or six tiffins and gradually it grew to over a hundred,” Abu told Arab News.

Asif Haroon, 50, who took over the business from his mother 30 years ago, said he was carrying on “just for the sake of the past.”

“One can say that someone working in the tiffin business is merely passing the time,” Haroon said. “It’s not the same as it was before.”

Hussain, who was on his way to start picking up empty tiffins as the afternoon sun went down, agreed. 

“Many people have left this work and moved on to other fields,” he said as he revved the engine of his motorcycle. “Only some of us have managed to keep this tradition of the past alive.”


Malaysian PM in Islamabad to attend business forum amid investment push by Pakistan

Updated 03 October 2024
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Malaysian PM in Islamabad to attend business forum amid investment push by Pakistan

  • In 2023-24, bilateral trade between Pakistan and Malaysia reached $1.5 billion
  • Pakistan is seeking foreign investments in a bid to shore up its $350 billion economy

ISLAMABAD: Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim will attend a joint business forum in Islamabad today, Thursday, as Pakistan pushes for foreign investment in a bid to shore up its $350 billion economy while navigating tough reforms mandated by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Ibrahim arrived in Islamabad on Wednesday on a three-day visit accompanied by a delegation of ministers and senior officials. Besides his one-on-one meeting with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and delegation-level talks, Ibrahim will also meet President Asif Ali Zardari and participate in the Pakistan-Malaysia Business Forum which begins at 530pm today. After delegation-level talks, both sides are expected to sign a number of MoUs and agreements, according to the PMO. 

“The discussion covered a wide range of bilateral, regional and international issues of mutual interest including those being faced by the Muslim Ummah,” the PMO said in a statement after a meeting between Sharif and Ibrahim. 

“They also discussed the mechanisms to enhance bilateral cooperation with a view to achieving concrete results in these areas.

“[Both leaders] underlined the importance of the Joint Ministerial Commission (JMC), Bilateral Consultations and other mechanisms to enhance engagement at all levels.”

On Wednesday, Pakistan’s Foreign Office said discussions between the Pakistani and Malaysian delegations would focus on strengthening ties in areas such as trade, connectivity, energy, agriculture, the halal food industry, tourism, and cultural exchanges. 

In 2023-24, bilateral trade between the two nations reached $1.5 billion, with Pakistan exporting rice, oil, textiles, and seafood and importing palm oil, LNG, and electronics. Malaysia is also a major source of visitors to Pakistan. 

Around 160,000 Pakistanis live in Malaysia, and more than 3,800 Pakistani students are enrolled in its universities. Pakistan is also a key labor source for Malaysia in sectors like construction and agriculture.