ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Friday condemned Israel’s refusal to allow displaced Palestinians to return to their homes in the occupied West Bank, calling it a serious violation of international law and urging the United Nations Security Council to intervene.

The condemnation followed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s declaration on Tuesday that Palestinians displaced from the Tulkarm refugee camp would not be allowed back, despite an Israeli Supreme Court order requiring the government to provide a timetable for their return.

Tens of thousands of Palestinians have been displaced from the Tulkarm, Jenin and Nur Shams refugee camps since Israel launched military operations in the northern West Bank in January 2025, saying it was targeting militant infrastructure. Most have been unable to return to their homes.

“Pakistan considers that continued forced displacement of Palestinians and attempts to prevent their return constitutes serious violation of international law and undermines the fundamental right of the Palestinian people,” Foreign Office spokesperson Sajjad Haider Khan told reporters at his weekly briefing.

“The international community, particularly the United Nations Security Council, must intervene to halt these unlawful evictions, enforce the right of return of displaced Palestinians and hold the occupying power accountable for its ongoing violations,” he added.

Netanyahu, speaking in a video statement filmed near the Tulkarm refugee camp, described it as a “terror stronghold” and praised Israeli troops for “clearing it out under our directives.”

Pakistan, which does not recognize Israel, has consistently supported a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, calling for the establishment of an independent Palestinian state based on pre-1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital.

Khan reiterated Islamabad’s support for the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination.

Separately, the spokesperson said Pakistan had joined 17 other countries in condemning Colombia’s decision to open an embassy in Jerusalem, warning that the move violated UN Security Council resolutions and undermined efforts to achieve a two-state solution.

Colombia inaugurated its embassy on Wednesday, joining a small group of countries that maintain diplomatic missions in Jerusalem, whose status remains one of the central disputes in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.