ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Ishaq Dar, on Sunday said Israel must be held accountable for its “war crimes” in Gaza, calling for an end to the “genocide” in the Palestinian territory.
Dar said this while attending the Organization of Islamic Cooperation’s (OIC) Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM) meeting in Riyadh to discuss Israel’s military campaign in Gaza.
The development came a day before an extraordinary Arab–Islamic summit between the Arab League and the OIC on Nov. 11 to address Israel’s bombardment and ground offensives in Gaza and Lebanon.
Speaking at the OIC CFM meeting, Dar condemned Israel’s “war crimes and crimes against humanity” in Palestine and demanded the world hold Israel accountable for them.
“[Dar] expressed alarm at Israeli adventurism in the Middle East that is endangering peace and security in the region,” the Pakistani foreign ministry said in a statement.
“[He] called on the international community to bring an end to Gaza genocide.”
Since Oct 7, 2023 attacks by Hamas, Israel’s military campaign in Gaza has killed over 43,000 people and injured thousands more. Israeli strikes on Lebanon, Iran and Syria have also heightened fears of a wider war in the Middle East.
Pakistan does not recognize nor have diplomatic relations with Israel and calls for an independent Palestinian state based on “internationally agreed parameters.”
The South Asian country has so far dispatched more than 1,300 tons of relief goods for Gaza and Lebanon, besides establishing the ‘Prime Minister’s Relief Fund for Gaza and Lebanon’ that aims to collect public donations for the war-affected people.
During his address, Dar also commended the OIC and the Arab League for their unwavering dedication to the Palestinian cause.
The Nov. 11 summit in Riyadh will be a follow-up to the Joint Arab-Islamic Extraordinary Summit held in November 2023 in Riyadh, according to the Pakistani foreign ministry.
The summit will be attended by PM Shehbaz Sharif who will reiterate Pakistan’s full support to the Palestinian cause.
Pakistan deputy PM calls for accountability of Israel over ‘war crimes’ in Gaza
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Pakistan deputy PM calls for accountability of Israel over ‘war crimes’ in Gaza
- Ishaq Dar said this while attending the Organization of Islamic Cooperation’s Council of Foreign Ministers meeting in Riyadh
- The development came a day before Arab–Islamic summit to address Israel’s bombardment and ground offensives in Gaza, Lebanon
Pakistan has ruled out military operation in northwestern Tirah Valley
- Residents in northwestern Tirah Valley fled their homes this month fearing a military operation against militants
- Defense minister says army conducting intelligence-based operations in area, residents’ migration “routine” practice
Islamabad: Defense Minister Khawaja Asif on Tuesday clarified that the military was not conducting a military operation in the northwestern Tirah Valley, saying that the ongoing residents’ migration from the area was a routine practice that has been going on for several years.
The defense minister’s clarification came as residents of Tirah Valley in Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province bordering Afghanistan fled their homes this month, fearing a planned military operation by the army against militants, particularly the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) group.
Pakistan’s information ministry on Sunday issued a clarification that the armed forces were not involved in the “depopulation” of the valley. It pointed to a notification from the provincial Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Relief, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Department in December which demanded the release of funds, reportedly Rs4 billion [$14.24 million], for the voluntary movement of people from Tirah Valley.
Speaking to reporters at a news conference alongside Information Minister Attaullah Tarar and Special Assistant to the PM for Information and KP Affairs Ikhtiar Wali Khan, Asif said the last military operation in the area was conducted several years ago. He said the military had decided that intelligence-based operations (IBOs) were more effective than military operations as they resulted in lower civilian casualties.
“So over a long period of time, the army gave up [military] operation in favor of IBOs,” Asif said. “For many years this practice has been continuing. Hence, there is no question of an operation there.”
The defense minister described the migration of residents from Tirah Valley as a “routine” practice due to the harsh cold.
He criticized the provincial government, led by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party for not serving the people of the area, accusing it of not building any schools, hospitals, or police stations in Tirah Valley.
Asif said around 400-500 TTP members lived in the valley with their families, alleging that hemp was being harvested there on over 12,000 acres of land. He said that while hemp is also used for medicinal and construction purposes, its dividends were going to militants and politicians.
“All of this hemp is harvested there and the dividends from it either go to the people associated with politics or the TTP,” the minister said.
“We have initiated the process to stop this so that the people benefit from this harvest and so that schools and hospitals are constructed there.”
The minister said that a district-level jirga or tribal council met representatives of the KP government on Dec. 11, 24 and 31 to decide matters related to the residents’ migration in the area.
Holding up the KP Relief, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Department notification, Asif said:
“In the presence of this notification, in the presence of this tribal council and in the presence of all of these things, where do you see the army?“
The minister accused the provincial government of deflecting its “failures” in the province to the armed forces or to a military operation that did not exist.
The migration has exposed tensions between the provincial government and the military establishment over the use of force in the region.
KP Law Minister Aftab Alam Afridi said earlier this month that the provincial government will not allow a military operation to take place in the area, arguing that past military campaigns had failed to deliver lasting stability.
