Pakistani PM hopes Sharaa assuming president’s office will bring peace to Syria

People sit in the Rawda caffe in the center of the Syrian capital Damascus on January 29, 2025, as local TV broadcasts images of Syria’s interim leader Ahmed Al-Sharaa. (AFP)
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Updated 01 February 2025
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Pakistani PM hopes Sharaa assuming president’s office will bring peace to Syria

  • Al-Sharaa was declared president for a transitional phase on Wednesday, less than two months after he led a campaign that toppled Bashar Assad
  • Sharaa said he will form an inclusive transitional government that will build institutions and run the country until it can hold free and fair elections

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday welcomed Ahmed Al-Sharaa’s assumption of the office of the Syrian president, hoping it would lead to peace in Syria.
Sharaa was declared president for a transitional phase on Wednesday, less than two months after he led a campaign that toppled Bashar Assad.
He was also empowered to form a temporary legislative council for a transitional period and the Syrian constitution was suspended.
“We welcome Mr. Ahmed Al-Sharaa’s assumption of office as President of the Syrian Arab Republic during the transitional phase and hope that the new leadership will be able to bring peace, progress and prosperity to the brotherly people of Syria,” Sharif said on X.




Syria’s President Ahmed Al-Sharaa delivers a speech at the Presidential Palace in Damascus, Syria in this undated handout image released on January 30, 2025. (Handout via REUTERS)

On Thursday, Sharaa said he will form an inclusive transitional government representing diverse communities that will build institutions and run the country until it can hold free and fair elections.
He was addressing the nation in his first speech since being appointed president by the military command that ousted Assad in a lightning offensive last year.
The group that led the offensive, Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham, has since set up an interim government that has welcomed a steady stream of senior Western and Arab diplomatic delegations keen to help stabilize the country after 13 years of civil war.


Pakistan rejects Amnesty claims of Israeli spyware use, calls reports ‘disinformation’

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Pakistan rejects Amnesty claims of Israeli spyware use, calls reports ‘disinformation’

  • FO denies any link with Israel, says Pakistan has “absolutely no cooperation” on surveillance tools
  • Islamabad accuses India of delaying clearance for relief aircraft bound for flood-hit Sri Lanka

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Friday rejected an Amnesty International report alleging the use of Israeli-made invasive spyware in the country, calling the findings speculative and misleading.

Amnesty’s investigation, published Thursday under the title Intellexa Leaks, cited the case of a Pakistan-based human rights lawyer who reported receiving a suspicious WhatsApp link in 2025. According to Amnesty International’s Security Lab, the link bore signatures consistent with Predator, a spyware product developed by Israeli manufacturer c

Foreign Office spokesperson Tahir Andrabi dismissed the suggestion that Islamabad had deployed the tool or maintained any technological cooperation with Israel.

“These are all media speculations. These are all rumor-mongering and disinformation. There is absolutely no cooperation between Pakistan and Israel on anything, let alone a spyware or these kinds of tools. So, I would reject it quite emphatically,” he said at a weekly briefing.

Andrabi also accused India of obstructing humanitarian operations, saying New Delhi delayed flight clearance for a Pakistani relief aircraft carrying aid to flood-affected Sri Lanka.

“The special aircraft carrying Pakistan’s relief goods had to wait for 48 hours, in fact more than 48 hours, around 60 hours, while the flight clearance from India was delayed,” he said.

He added that the eventual conditional flight window was too narrow to be workable.

“The partial flight clearance which eventually was given after 48 hours was operationally impractical, time-bound just for a few hours and hence not operable, severely hindering the urgent need for the relief mission for the brotherly people of Sri Lanka,” Andrabi stated.

“Humanitarian assistance is like justice, if it is delayed, it is denied.”

Responding to India’s claim that clearance was granted within four hours, he said Pakistan has documentary proof contradicting New Delhi’s version.

On a separate question about reported delays in the arrival of a Turkish delegation aimed at mediating between Islamabad and Kabul, Andrabi said Pakistan welcomed Ankara’s initiative but was unaware of the cause of postponement.

“We stand ready to receive the Turkish delegation. That delegation has not arrived as yet. And I’m not aware of any schedule. Pakistan is ready to hold negotiations, discussions,” he said, adding that the delay may be linked to coordination with the Afghan side.