ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar on Friday held a meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Saudi Arabia ahead of an extraordinary Organization of Islamic Cooperation summit, expressing solidarity with the embattled residents of Gaza and denouncing Israel for employing “indiscriminate force” against them for over a month.
Kakar arrived in Riyadh to attend the summit that is scheduled to be convened today, Saturday, on the Saudi request to put out a joint statement to highlight the position of the OIC countries over the issue which has led to the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza.
According to an OIC social media post, senior officials of its member states have been working on the statement since November 9. The draft final communique will be submitted to the preparatory Foreign Ministers’ Meeting for consideration, and subsequently to the Eighth Extraordinary Islamic Summit for adoption.
The Pakistan PM, who has already condemned “incessant and lethal” bombardment of Gaza, reiterated the need for an immediate cease-fire during his conversation with President Abbas.
“The Prime Minister conveyed unflinching solidarity of Pakistan with the Palestinian people,” the PM Office said in a statement. “He strongly denounced the indiscriminate use of force by Israeli occupation forces and bombing of hospitals, refugee camps, schools and residential buildings, resulting in the loss of more than ten thousand precious lives and forced displacement of Palestinian families.”
Abbas appreciated Pakistan’s expression of solidarity at a difficult time and applauded its stance on the right of self-determination of the Palestinian people.
The prime minister also appreciated the timeliness of the extraordinary OIC summit and appealed to the global community, particularly the United Nations, to take resolute measures to uphold principles of justice and humanity to end the carnage of Palestinians.
“Prime Minister Kakar underscored Pakistan’s unwavering commitment to a fair and enduring resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, founded on the two-state solution, leading to the establishment of a sovereign and viable Palestinian state with Al Quds Al Sharif as its capital, along borders that existed prior to 1967 enshrined in several OIC resolutions,” the statement concluded.
The OIC summit comes amid Israeli military incursion following a deadly attack by Hamas on October 7 in which nearly 1,400 people were reportedly killed.
The number of Palestinians killed in the war has risen to over 11,000, including more than 4,400 children, according to the Gaza health ministry. In the occupied West Bank as well, more than 160 Palestinians have been killed in violence and Israeli raids.
