ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has called on the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to clearly state its legal position on last week’s Israeli strikes targeting nuclear facilities in Iran while highlighting their grave implications for regional and international security.

The call came during an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council on Friday, after Israel launched airstrikes about a week ago that killed several senior Iranian military commanders and nuclear scientists, triggering a direct military confrontation between the two countries.

Israel’s attacks came as Tehran was engaged in negotiations with the United States to reach a nuclear agreement. Iran has repeatedly stated it has no intention of building nuclear weapons but will not surrender its right to a peaceful nuclear program or halt uranium enrichment activities.

Israel, however, contends that Iran is close to developing a bomb. The United States has backed Israel in the conflict and called for Iran’s “complete surrender,” insisting Tehran must not be allowed to obtain a nuclear weapon.

Pakistan, in its remarks to the Council, reiterated its condemnation of Israel’s “unjustified and illegitimate aggression,” describing the attacks on nuclear facilities as “deeply troubling.”

“It is the responsibility of the IAEA to clearly pronounce its legal position with regard to such attacks as well as to report to its Board of Governors and to the Security Council about the legal, safeguards, safety and security implications of such attacks,” Pakistan’s Ambassador to the UN, Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, told the Council.

“The Agency should fulfil that responsibility,” he added.

The Pakistani envoy also denounced Israel’s widening war in the Middle East, including in Gaza, Syria, Lebanon and Yemen. He maintained that Tel Aviv’s attack on Iran had further inflamed an already volatile regional situation.

Ahmad also said the UN Security Council must act decisively to halt Israel’s military actions and prevent the situation from spiraling further.

He urged the Council to categorically reject Israel’s actions, promote de-escalation and support a comprehensive ceasefire.

The Pakistani envoy further called on the Council to denounce the targeting of nuclear facilities safeguarded by the IAEA, pointing out that diplomacy must remain central to resolving the Iran-Israel crisis.

“Dialogue and diplomacy in full adherence to the principles of international law and the UN Charter remain the only viable path to resolving the crisis,” he said. “This Council must unite in support of the Secretary-General’s call to end the fighting and return to dialogue and negotiations.”

Ahmad also stressed that the IAEA must be allowed to continue its verification work “unimpeded,” and should operate in an “impartial and apolitical manner” to ensure credible and objective reporting on matters under its mandate.

KARACHI: Pakistan’s polio eradication program on Friday said a new wild poliovirus case had been detected in the country’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, bringing the total tally of 2025 cases to 12.

Polio is a paralyzing disease with no cure, making prevention through vaccination critical. Multiple doses of the oral polio vaccine, along with the completion of the routine immunization schedule for all children, are essential to build strong immunity against the virus.

The country conducted three nationwide vaccination campaigns in February, April and May, aiming to immunize around 45 million children across Pakistan with the support of over 400,000 frontline workers including 225,000 women vaccinators.

“The Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at the National Institute of Health, Islamabad, has confirmed a new case of wild poliovirus in District Bannu, South Khyber Pakhtunkhwa,” the body said in a statement.

“The 33-month-old male child from Union Council Shamsikhel, District Bannu is the sixth case of polio reported from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa this year.”

Pakistan has reported 12 polio cases so far this year, including six from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, four from the southern Sindh province and one each from the populous Punjab province and the northern Gilgit-Baltistan region.

Pakistan, one of the last two countries where polio remains endemic along with Afghanistan, has made significant progress in curbing the virus, with annual cases dropping from around 20,000 in the early 1990s to just eight in 2018.

However, the country reported an alarmingly high number of 74 cases in 2024, after six in 2023 and only one in 2021.

Health Minister Mustafa Kamal on Thursday claimed that Pakistan has recorded a 99 percent decline in polio cases, as he urged global vaccine organization Gavi to invest more in efforts to “train and retain” vaccinators.

Pakistan launched its polio eradication program in 1994, but its efforts have repeatedly been hindered by widespread vaccine misinformation and resistance from hard-line religious groups who claim immunization campaigns are a Western conspiracy to sterilize Muslim children or a front for espionage.

Militant groups have also targeted polio workers and police officials providing them security, often with deadly attacks that have hampered vaccination drives, particularly in the country’s remote and conflict-prone regions.