ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Turkiye have condemned Israel’s “genocidal” policies in Gaza and vowed to advocate for Palestinian rights at all international platforms, the Pakistani prime minister’s office said on Sunday.

The statement came after Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Tianjin, China on the sidelines of a meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization’s (SCO) Council of Heads of State (CHS).

Israel’s war on Gaza has killed more than 62,000 people, including children, doctors, health workers and journalists, since Oct. 2023, according to Gaza health authorities and the United Nations.

The United Nations (UN) this month warned of crimes against humanity and reported “catastrophic levels of forced starvation” in the territory, with more than two million people at risk of famine.

“The two sides exchanged views on key regional and international developments,” Sharif’s office said in a statement after his meeting with Erdogan.

“They expressed grave concern over the worsening humanitarian situation in Gaza and reaffirmed their shared commitment to using international platforms to advocate for the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people and to condemn the ongoing Israeli aggression and genocidal policies.”

The two figures reviewed the current state of Pakistan-Turkiye relations and expressed satisfaction over the growing momentum in bilateral ties, according to the statement. They noted with appreciation the steady increase in high-level exchanges and cooperation across a broad spectrum, including political, economic, defense, and security domains.

“The meeting reaffirmed the deep-rooted brotherly ties between Pakistan and Türkiye and underscored their shared resolve to further strengthen cooperation for peace, stability, and prosperity in the Muslim world and beyond,” Sharif’s office said.

Sharif, who is on a six-day visit to China, will also be addressing the SCO summit which is being attended by more than 20 foreign leaders, including Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Pakistan’s foreign office earlier said that Sharif’s meetings with President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang during the visit will focus on multifaceted dimensions of Pakistan-China bilateral cooperation.