ISLAMABAD: Pakistan voted in favor of a US plan authorizing an International Stabilization Force (ISF) in Gaza to maintain peace in the region on Monday, with its UN ambassador calling for the complete withdrawal of Israeli troops from the area and reiterating support for Palestinians’ right to self-determination.
The UN Security Council on Monday voted 13-0 in favor of Washington’s plan. Russia, which had circulated a rival resolution, abstained along with China from voting altogether. The resolution endorses US President Donald Trump’s 20-point ceasefire plan, which calls for a yet-to-be-established Board of Peace as a transitional authority that Trump would head. It also authorizes the stabilization force and gives it a wide mandate, including overseeing borders, providing security and demilitarizing the territory. Authorization for the board and force expire at the end of 2027.
The vote was a crucial next step for the fragile ceasefire persisting in Gaza and efforts to outline the territory’s future, following two years of Israel’s war in which over 69,000 Palestinians have been killed. Arab and other Muslim countries that expressed interest in providing troops for an international force had signaled that Security Council authorization was essential for their participation.
“Pakistan has voted in favor of this resolution with the primary objective in the immediate term to stop the bloodshed, to save the lives of innocent Palestinians, including women and children, to maintain the ceasefire, to ensure much-needed large-scale humanitarian relief and to secure the full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza,” Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Iftikhar Ahmad said at the Security Council late Monday night.
Ahmad hoped the coming weeks would provide “much-needed clarity” on several issues that the plan did not address in detail, such as a clear political path to Palestinian statehood, the role of the Palestinian Authority in governance and reconstruction and enhanced involvement of the UN and the ISF’s mandate.
He reiterated Islamabad’s stance of backing Palestinian self-determination, the establishment of a sovereign, independent and contiguous Palestinian state based on the pre-1967 borders with Al-Quds, Al-Sharif as its capital.
Ahmad also said the executive and administrative authority in Gaza must remain with the Palestinians through a Palestinian committee.
“We reiterate that the role of the Palestinian Authority is absolutely central and critical in this process,” he said. “A legitimate Palestinian representation is essential for credible governance and genuine Palestinian ownership.”
He pointed out that the ISF’s mandate will only be effective once Israel fully withdraws her troops from Gaza.
“There must be no annexation and no forced displacement under any circumstances,” the Pakistani envoy stressed.
Ahmad said Hamas’ disarmament should take place through an “agreed political process negotiated under a unified Palestinian national authority,” calling on all sides to respect the fragile ceasefire in place.
Pakistan, which does not have diplomatic relations with Israel, has bee consistently criticizing Tel Aviv since October 2023, when it began its military offensives against Gaza. Islamabad has called on the international community to hold Israel accountable for its “war crimes” in Palestine.
