Pakistan Senate unanimously passes resolution condemning Israel’s campaigns against Gaza, Syria

Pakistan Peoples Party Senator Sherry Rehman speaks in the upper house of parliament in Islamabad, Pakistan, on October 17, 2024. (Senate of Pakistan/File)
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Updated 13 December 2024
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Pakistan Senate unanimously passes resolution condemning Israel’s campaigns against Gaza, Syria

  • Pakistan Peoples Party Senator Sherry Rehman moves resolution urging international community to protect Palestinian lives
  • Senate condemns Israel’s “exploitation of political vacuum” in Syria after the fall of Bashar Assad’s government in the country

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s upper house of parliament, the Senate, passed a unanimous resolution on Thursday condemning Israel’s bombardment of Gaza and Syria, urging the international community to intervene and protect Palestinian lives, state-run media reported. 
Israel’s military campaign in Gaza has killed more than 44,000 people and injured thousands more since the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks by Hamas in which Israel says 1,200 people were killed and 250 taken hostage. 
Israel has also attacked Syria since the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s government this month and conducted a military incursion into the buffer zone separating the two countries since 1974, despite protests from the UN.
“The Senate on Thursday passed a resolution unanimously condemning Israel’s bombardment extending to many countries,” the Associated Press of Pakistan (APP) reported. 
The resolution was moved by Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Senator Sherry Rehman on behalf of all political parties.
As per the resolution, the Senate strongly condemned Israel’s blatant disregard for international law, particularly in its actions against Palestine and urged the Jewish state be held accountable for them.
The Senate also condemned Israel for its “exploitation of the political vacuum” in Syria following Assad’s government. 
“This agenda now extends beyond Palestine to violations of the sovereignty of Syria and many other countries,” the resolution said. 
Calling for immediate accountability for Israel’s actions, the Senate also condemned the killing of United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) team members in the Middle East. 
Israel has killed 249 UNRWA staff members in its military campaigns carried out up till November this year, it added.
“Such attacks are a blatant violation of United Nations General Assembly Resolution 302; which mandates UNRWA’s role in providing critical humanitarian assistance to vulnerable populations,” the resolution said. 
Pakistan’s upper house of parliament also condemned the targeted killing of over 180 journalists during Israeli bombings in Gaza along with the destruction of critical infrastructure including hospitals, schools and even residential areas.
“The Senate reaffirms Pakistan’s unwavering support for the Palestinian cause, recognizing it as a moral, political, and legal obligation. Pakistan reiterates its consistent support for the two-state solution of the Palestinian issue, as enshrined in relevant Security Council and General Assembly resolutions,” the resolution stated. 
The Senate also urged the international community to take action to “protect Palestinian lives, hold Israel accountable for war crimes and ensure compliance with international humanitarian law.”
Since the beginning of Israel’s war on Gaza, Pakistan has repeatedly raised the issue at the UN, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and other multilateral platforms, demanding international powers and bodies stop Israeli military actions in Gaza.
Pakistan has dispatched a total of 1,273 tons of relief items to the war-affected people of Gaza until Nov. 27, according to the National Disaster Management Authority.
The South Asian nation does not recognize nor have diplomatic relations with 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.


Pakistan minister calls for integrating ocean awareness into education to preserve ecosystems

Updated 31 January 2026
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Pakistan minister calls for integrating ocean awareness into education to preserve ecosystems

  • Pakistan’s maritime sector posted a record $360 million profit in 2025 following a year of sweeping reforms
  • Junaid Anwar Chaudhry says education equips youth to make informed decisions, contribute to blue economy

KARACHI: Pakistan’s Maritime Affairs Minister Junaid Anwar Chaudhry has urged integrating ocean awareness into formal education systems and empowering youth as active partners in order to preserve marine ecosystems, his ministry said on Saturday.

Chaudhry said this at a meeting with Minister of State for Education and Professional Training, Wajiha Qamar, who called on him and discussed strategies for enhancing marine education, literacy, and youth engagement in sustainable ocean management.

Pakistan’s maritime sector posted a record Rs100 billion ($360 million) profit in 2025 following a year of sweeping reforms aimed at improving port efficiency, cost-cutting, and safeguarding marine ecosystems to boost the blue economy.

“Understanding our oceans is no longer optional, it is essential for climate resilience, sustainable development, and the long-term health of our maritime resources,” Chaudhry said, highlighting the critical role of marine literacy.

The minister said education equips youth to make informed decisions and actively contribute to marine conservation and the blue economy, urging inclusion of marine ecosystems, conservation and human-ocean interactions into curricula, teacher training and global citizenship programs.

“Initiatives like ‘Ocean Literacy for All’ can mainstream these elements in national policies, school programs, and community workshops to build proactive citizenship on marine challenges,” he added.

Ocean Literacy for All is a UNESCO Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission–coordinated global initiative under the UN Ocean Decade (2021–2030) that promotes ocean awareness, education, and conservation.

Chaudhry announced reforms in maritime education, including granting degree-awarding status to the Pakistan Marine Academy, and the establishment of the Maritime Educational Endowment Fund (MEEF) to provide scholarships for deserving children from coastal communities.

“The scholarship program promotes inclusive development by enabling access to quality education for youth from over 70 coastal and fishing communities, particularly in Sindh and Balochistan,” he said.

The discussions underscored raising awareness about oceans, coastal ecosystems and marine resources, according to the Pakistani maritime affairs ministry. Both ministers stressed the need to integrate climate and marine education from classrooms

to community programs, addressing risks like rising sea temperatures, coastal erosion, biodiversity loss and pollution.

“Incorporating marine science and ocean literacy into curricula can help students connect local challenges with global trends,” Qamar said, underscoring education’s transformative power in building social resilience.

The meeting explored translating complex marine science into accessible public knowledge through sustained, solution-oriented awareness campaigns, according to the maritime affairs ministry.

With coastline facing pressures from climate change, pollution, and overexploitation, the ministers called for a coordinated approach blending formal education, informal learning and youth-led advocacy.

“A joint effort by the Ministries of Maritime Affairs and Education can cultivate an ocean-literate generation, transforming vulnerability into resilience and ensuring the long-term sustainability of coastal and marine ecosystems,” Chaudhry said.