https://arab.news/v8u8m
- Shehbaz Sharif said at the gathering Israel was committing ‘genocide’ and must be held accountable
- Minister Attaullah Tarar maintains no one has ever spoken so clearly about the Palestinian cause before
ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Attaullah Tarar applauded Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday for adopting a clear stance over Palestine at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) in Kazakhstan while describing it as “historic.”
Sharif participated in the SCO and SCO-Plus summits in Astana where he addressed a range of global and regional issues, including Israel’s ongoing war in Gaza that has entered its tenth month.
He criticized Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s administration for the bloodshed of thousands of women and children and demanded an immediate ceasefire.
“I would especially like to mention the unambiguous words and clear and blunt stance adopted by the Pakistani prime minister regarding Palestine at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit, which were historic,” Tarar said. “No one has ever spoken so clearly about the Palestinian cause before.”
He said that Sharif had not only maintained that Israel was “committing genocide” against the unarmed and oppressed Palestinians but also highlighted that it was “engaging in war crimes.”
“The prime minister said very clearly that Israel must be made answerable: Israel must be held accountable,” he added.
Tarar said Sharif had echoed the sentiments of every Pakistan, regardless of their political affiliation and faith, by presenting his country’s stance over the Palestine issue.
Israel launched its air and ground offensive targeting Gaza last October following a surprise attack by Hamas in which around 1,200 people were killed and more than 250 were taken hostages.
The Palestinian group said its attack was in response to the deteriorating condition of Palestinian people living under occupation.
Israel’s response was widely viewed as disproportionate by the international community in which nearly 38,000 people, mostly women and children, have died.
Israel was taken to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) by South Africa on the allegaton of committing genocide where other nations joined the proceedings as well.