Pakistan slams Israel’s attacks in Lebanon and Iran, warns of escalation in Middle East

Pakistan slams Israel’s attacks in Lebanon and Iran, warns of escalation in Middle East
This handout picture released by the Israeli army on August 1, 2024, shows troops in the Gaza Strip. (AFP)
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Updated 01 August 2024
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Pakistan slams Israel’s attacks in Lebanon and Iran, warns of escalation in Middle East

Pakistan slams Israel’s attacks in Lebanon and Iran, warns of escalation in Middle East
  • Pakistan calls Israeli attacks on civilian areas in Lebanon ‘blatant violation of international law’
  • It says Israel has unleashed a ‘campaign of terror’ against Palestinian people since October 2023

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan criticized Israel on Thursday for launching attacks in Lebanon and Iran, saying its actions could lead to a major escalation of hostilities in the Middle East and scuttle the prospects of sustainable peace in the region.
Israel assassinated Ismail Haniyeh, the top Hamas political leader, while he was in Tehran to attend the inauguration of Iran’s new president, Masoud Pezeshkian.
While Israel did not directly claimed responsibility for the attack, its involvement was widely acknowledged across the world, with Iran vowing revenge against it for targeting its state guest.
Haniyeh’s killing came within a day of another attack in Beirut, Lebanon, where Israel targeted a top Hezbollah commander in what it described as an “intelligence-based elimination.”
“Israel’s latest actions in the region represent a dangerous expansion of hostilities that undermines efforts to achieve a just and lasting peace in the Middle East,” the foreign office spokesperson, Mumtaz Zahra Baloch, said during her weekly media briefing.
“Israel’s extraterritorial acts have endangered regional security,” she continued. “The backers of Israel should prevail on Israel to end its unlawful military operations in violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of countries in the region.”
Baloch described Israel’s attack in Beirut as a “grievous infringement on Lebanon’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
“This attack on civilian areas is a blatant violation of international law and the United Nations Charter,” she added.
The foreign office spokesperson said targeting individuals inside sovereign states was a violation of international law and global norms, adding such acts carried the seeds of further escalation.
She said it was “yet another demonstration of indiscriminate and disproportionate Israeli aggression,” calling it detrimental to the regional and global peace and security.
“Yesterday’s assassination of Ismail Haniyeh, the Chief of the Political Bureau of Hamas in Tehran, was an act of dangerous escalation in an already volatile region and undermines efforts for peace,” she maintained. “We express our condolences to his family and the Palestinian people. His killers must be held to account.”
Baloch said Israel had unleashed a “campaign of terror” against the Palestinian people since October 2023.
“Its war on Gaza and the inhumane siege in violation of international human rights and humanitarian law have resulted in misery, death and destruction,” she added. “These acts constitute war crimes and crimes against humanity. We call upon the United Nations to uphold international law and to bring an end to the genocide of the people of Gaza.”
She reiterated Pakistan’s support for Palestinian right to self-determination, their right of return to their homeland and the establishment of an independent state for them “with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital.”
 


Pakistan calls on Sudan’s warring parties to engage, work to end humanitarian crisis

Pakistan calls on Sudan’s warring parties to engage, work to end humanitarian crisis
Updated 28 January 2025
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Pakistan calls on Sudan’s warring parties to engage, work to end humanitarian crisis

Pakistan calls on Sudan’s warring parties to engage, work to end humanitarian crisis
  • War between Sudan’s army and Rapid Support Forces broke out in 2023 due to disputes over integration of two forces
  • Conflict has displaced more than 12 million people and plunged half the population of nearly 49 million people into hunger

ISLAMABAD: Ambassador Munir Akram, Pakistan’s permanent representative to the United Nations, has called on Sudan’s warring parties to re-engage in negotiations to end a 21-month-long war that has killed tens of thousands, driven millions from their homes and plunged half of the population into hunger.

The war between Sudan’s army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) broke out in April 2023 due to disputes over the integration of the two forces. The war has displaced more than 12 million people, while plunging half the population of 49 million people into hunger, for which both the RSF and army are blamed.

“We call on both sides to implement the commitments made under Jeddah declaration on protection of civilians and the facilitation of humanitarian action to meet the emergency needs of the Sudanese people,” Akram said in a speech to the UN Security Council.

The Pakistani envoy spoke after the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Karim Khan, briefed the 15-member council on the deteriorating situation in Sudan’s Darfur region on Monday.

“The blatant violations of international humanitarian law with impunity must stop, and the suffering of the Sudanese people brought to an end,” Akram said. “The Sudanese people have seen unimaginable atrocities during the nearly two years of the recent conflict.”

He extended Pakistan’s condolences to the victims and their families of a RSF drone attack on a Saudi hospital last week in which at least 70 people were killed.

“Pakistan firmly upholds the unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Sudan,” Akram added. “We call for an immediate and unconditional ceasefire … The parties need to find a sustainable political resolution through peaceful means. The humanitarian crisis in the country needs to be addressed.”

Akram said although Pakistan was not a party to the Rome Treaty establishing the ICC, it was committed to the objective of accountability for international crimes, whether they were committed in Darfur, Gaza, Afghanistan, or elsewhere.

“The ICC can gain global credibility if it displays full objectivity and impartiality in the cases and persons it decides to investigate and prosecute,” he said. “Some jurisdictions have so far been immune from prosecution for widely reported crimes, including those committed in situations of foreign occupation and intervention.”


‘It’s over now,’ says Imran Khan party, boycotting latest talks offer by Pakistan government

‘It’s over now,’ says Imran Khan party, boycotting latest talks offer by Pakistan government
Updated 28 January 2025
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‘It’s over now,’ says Imran Khan party, boycotting latest talks offer by Pakistan government

‘It’s over now,’ says Imran Khan party, boycotting latest talks offer by Pakistan government
  • Negotiations started last month with aim of cooling political temperatures in Pakistan, three rounds held so far
  • PTI says government hasn’t met seven-day deadline to announce truth commissions to investigate alleged violent protests 

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) of jailed former premier Imran Khan has refused to join reconciliatory talks with the government today, Tuesday, accusing it of failing to abide by a seven-day deadline to respond to demands the party had given earlier this month. 

Khan’s PTI party mainly demands the release of political prisoners and the setting up of two judicial commissions to probe the events that led to his arrest in August 2023, and violent protest rallies, including one on May 9, 2023, when his supporters rampaged through military offices and installations, and a second on Nov. 26, 2024, in which the government says four troops were killed. 

Negotiations started last month with the aim of cooling political temperatures in the South Asian nation and three rounds have been held so far. At the last meeting on Jan. 16, the PTI had given the government seven days to announce the truth commissions, a deadline that expired last Thursday. 

“The government has invited us to talks but we have categorically said that you didn’t make the commissions, so we have called them [talks] off, it’s over now,” PTI chairman Gohar Khan, who is also Imran Khan’s lawyer, told reporters on Monday. “We won’t go tomorrow [Tuesday].”

A spokesperson from the government side has said it will dissolve its negotiating committee if the PTI refuses to join talks on Tuesday.

A Pakistani court earlier this month sentenced Khan to 14 years in prison in a land corruption case, a setback to the nascent talks’ process.

The negotiations opened last month as Khan had threatened a civil disobedience movement and amid growing concerns he could face trial by a military court for allegedly inciting attacks on sensitive security installations during the May 9 protests.

Khan’s first arrest in May 2023 in the land graft case in which he was sentenced last week sparked countrywide protests that saw his supporters attack and ransack military installations in an unprecedented backlash against Pakistan’s powerful army generals. Although Khan was released days later, he was rearrested in August that year after being convicted in a corruption case. He remains in prison and says all cases against him are politically motivated.

Protests demanding Khan’s release in November also turned violent, with the PTI saying 12 supporters were killed while the state said four troops had died.


At Pakistan Military Academy, Palestinian cadets of today strive to become officers of tomorrow

At Pakistan Military Academy, Palestinian cadets of today strive to become officers of tomorrow
Updated 28 January 2025
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At Pakistan Military Academy, Palestinian cadets of today strive to become officers of tomorrow

At Pakistan Military Academy, Palestinian cadets of today strive to become officers of tomorrow
  • Arab News gets exclusive access to 49 Palestinian cadets training in military and academic subjects at PMA
  • 2,000 cadets, among them 132 foreigners, daily sweat through drills and exercises at premier Pakistani academy 

KAKUL, Pakistan: On a chilly day earlier this month, hundreds of cadets marched together in formation, fists clenched, eyes looking straight ahead as they performed an early morning drill. 

It was a usual day of training at the Pakistan Military Academy in Kakul in northwestern Pakistan, where approximately 2,000 gentlemen cadets daily sweat through the rudiments of leadership in preparation for commission as officers in the army. Among them are 132 foreign cadets, of whom 49 are Palestinians.

The PMA was created less than two months after Pakistan gained independence from British colonial rule in 1947. Since then, over 1600 cadets from 31 foreign nations, including Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Iraq, Palestine, Qatar and Bahrain, have trained at the facility. 

One current student is 21 years old Imaduddin, a resident of Nablus in the occupied West Bank, who arrived at the PMA in December 2022, enrolling first in an English language course to hone his communication skills and then getting into the 152 PMA Long Course, known for its tough physical fitness and military training programs. 

“I have seen the tough training of the PMA that makes me proud and makes me confident to be fit enough to transform from a civilian to a military personality,” said Imaduddin, who is studying military and academic subjects as well as taking part in physical fitness and other training drills. 

The picture taken on January 21, 2025, shows the entrance of Pakistan Military Academy in Kakul in northwestern Pakistan. (AN photo)

According to the military’s media wing, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), cadets at PMA are given academic training focused on military strategy, leadership principles, and modern warfare techniques, along with rigorous physical training to ensure peak fitness and endurance. They are also trained in drill for discipline and precision, and in weapon handling to operate various arms proficiently.

“The most important [characteristic] I have learned here is discipline,” Imaduddin said. 

Palestinian cadets receive a briefing at the Pakistan Military Academy in Kakul in northwestern Pakistan on January 22, 2025. (AN photo)

Another Palestinian cadet, Muhammad Eid, 21, said the training he received from Pakistani instructors at the PMA was “transformative,” enabling him to enhance his physical fitness and discipline.

“After passing out, we will share our experience and knowledge with Palestinian troops back home,” Eid told Arab News. 

Muhammad Eid attend a military briefing at the Pakistan Military Academy in Kakul in northwestern Pakistan on January 22, 2025. (AN photo)

The 15-month Gaza war which began in October 2023 until a ceasefire was signed between Israel and Hamas earlier this month has fueled passion in the hearts of many of the Palestinian cadets that Arab News spoke to. 

“Of course, we feel this pressure [of the Palestine situation] in our hearts and our minds,” Imaduddin said. “And this should give us the motivation to work hard and do everything and learn a lot for my country and my family and my people over there in Palestine.”

Palestinian cadet Imaduddin talks to Arab News at the Pakistan Military Academy in Kakul in northwestern Pakistan on January 22, 2025. (AN photo)

Twenty-year-old Palestinian cadet Muhammad Yahya Arafat also told Arab News he aimed to use the “very good training” he was receiving at the PMA to help his Palestinian compatriots back home. 

“I am motivated to go, to go back to my country to protect my people, because I get very good training,” he said. “I know how to protect my people and serve my country now.”

Palestinian cadet Muhammad Yahya Arafat talks to Arab News at the Pakistan Military Academy in Kakul in northwestern Pakistan on January 22, 2025. (AN photo)

Major Mohammad Saad Khan, a platoon commander at PMA, said Palestinian cadets were fully integrated into platoons alongside Pakistani peers, with both taking part in rigorous physical conditioning and advanced academic programs together.

He praised Palestinian cadets for training with “all-out efforts” and forming close bonds with their Pakistani peers. 

Cadets take part in a military exercise at the Pakistan Military Academy in Kakul in northwestern Pakistan on January 22, 2025. (AN photo)

“They are highly motivated, and the enthusiasm that they have, the drive that they have is really encouraging,” Khan said. 

Major Mohammad Saad Khan, a platoon commander, speaks to Arab News at the Pakistan Military Academy in Kakul in northwestern Pakistan on January 22, 2025. (AN photo)

“The spark in their training, the spark that is there in their eyes, it truly shows how committed they are to the service of their nation, how much they are worried about the sovereignty of their nation.”


PM Sharif meets Moroccan envoy after 22 Pakistanis rescued in migrant shipwreck 

PM Sharif meets Moroccan envoy after 22 Pakistanis rescued in migrant shipwreck 
Updated 28 January 2025
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PM Sharif meets Moroccan envoy after 22 Pakistanis rescued in migrant shipwreck 

PM Sharif meets Moroccan envoy after 22 Pakistanis rescued in migrant shipwreck 
  • The boat capsized off Morocco on Jan. 15 while carrying 86 migrants, including 66 Pakistanis
  • Pakistan’s Foreign Office has said that it is in process of repatriating 22 survivors of the tragedy

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday thanked Morocco’s King Muhammad VI and the Moroccan government for the rescue of 22 Pakistani nationals in a shipwreck off the coast of Dakhla city as he met the Moroccan ambassador, Mohamed Karmoune, in Islamabad.
The boat capsized near Morocco’s coast on Jan. 15 while carrying 86 migrants, including 66 Pakistanis, according to migrant rights group Walking Borders. Pakistan’s Foreign Office said last week that it was in process of repatriating 22 survivors of the tragedy.
Pakistan’s embassy in Rabat has been working closely with Moroccan authorities to oversee the relief efforts and finalize the complex repatriation procedure, according to the Pakistani Foreign Office.
In his meeting with the Moroccan ambassador, Sharif expressed Pakistan’s “deep appreciation” of the Moroccan leadership for the support extended in rescuing stranded Pakistanis who had survived the boat capsize.
“He thanked the local Moroccan authorities for extending their full cooperation to the Pakistani officials involved in repatriation of the survivors as well as the remains of those deceased,” Sharif’s office said.
The Morocco tragedy has once again underscored the perilous journeys many migrants, including Pakistanis, embark on due to conflict and economic instability in their home countries.
In 2023, hundreds of migrants, including 262 Pakistanis, drowned when an overcrowded vessel sank in international waters off the southwestern Greek town of Pylos, marking one of the deadliest boat disasters ever recorded in the Mediterranean Sea. More recently, five Pakistani nationals died in a shipwreck off the southern Greek island of Gavdos on Dec. 14.
The Pakistani government has ramped up efforts in recent months to combat human smugglers facilitating dangerous journeys for illegal immigrants to Europe, resulting in several arrests.
Recalling brotherly ties between Pakistan and Morocco at Monday’s meeting, Sharif said there was a need to strengthen trade and investment cooperation between the two countries. Islamabad has been actively pursuing trade and investment opportunities to put the $350 billion South Asian economy on the path of recovery since avoiding a default in mid-2023.
The Moroccan ambassador reaffirmed his country’s commitment to further strengthen cooperation with Pakistan across all areas of shared interest, according to Sharif’s office.
“The two sides are working closely to convene meetings of the institutional consultative mechanisms, including Bilateral Political Consultations at an early date,” it added.


Pakistan senate body passes controversial bill giving government sweeping controls on social media

Pakistan senate body passes controversial bill giving government sweeping controls on social media
Updated 28 January 2025
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Pakistan senate body passes controversial bill giving government sweeping controls on social media

Pakistan senate body passes controversial bill giving government sweeping controls on social media
  • The new law aims to set up a social media regulatory authority that will have its own investigation agency and tribunals
  • These tribunals will be able to try and punish offenders with prison sentences of up to three years and fines of Rs2 million

ISLAMABAD: A standing committee of Pakistan’s Senate, the upper house of parliament, on Monday approved a bill to amend the country’s cybercrime law, the committee chairman said, amid opposition from journalists and rights groups.
Pakistan’s National Assembly, lower house of parliament, introduced and passed the amendments to the Pakistan Electronic Crimes Act (PECA) on Thursday. The amendments were presented in the Senate on Friday and were forwarded to a relevant committee for consideration. After their passage from both houses, the draft will be sent to the president to be signed into a law.
The new regulations will set up a social media regulatory authority that will have its own investigation agency and tribunals, according to a draft on the parliament’s website. Such tribunals will be able to try and punish offenders with prison sentences of up to three years and fines of two million rupees ($7,200) for dissemination of “false or fake” information.
In his report, Senator Faisal Rehman, chairman of the Senate Standing Committee on Interior, said the proposed amendments establish a robust framework for tackling cybercrimes through the creation of a key government mechanism, which will “ensure the protection of the citizens’ digital rights, regulate online content, and promote secure and responsible Internet usage.”
“After detailed discussion, the bill was put to the vote of the committee which was passed by the majority votes,” Senator Rehman said. “The committee recommends that ‘The Prevention of Electronic Crimes (Amendment) Bill, 2025,’ as passed by the National Assembly, may be passed by the House [Senate].”
The draft is expected to be presented before the Senate in the next few days, before being sent to the president for a final nod.
Pakistan’s Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar told parliament on Thursday the law was introduced to block “false and fake” news on social media, which he said had no specific regulations to govern it.
But the proposed amendments have angered journalism groups and rights activists, which say it is aimed at curbing press freedom.
“We reject this unilateral decision by the government to set up any such tribunals,” Pakistan’s Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) President Afzal Butt told Reuters on Friday. “We also are in favor of regulations, but, you know, a law enforcement agency or a police officer can’t decide what is false or fake news.”
Global human rights watchdog Amnesty International said the amendment will “further tighten” the government’s grip on the “heavily controlled digital landscape” in the South Asian country.
The Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA), passed in 2016, triggered widespread criticism from human rights organizations and activists for its potential for “harmful impact” on the right to freedom of expression and access to information in Pakistan.
Reporters Without Borders, an organization that promotes and defends press freedom, ranked Pakistan low on its 2024 World Press Freedom Index, at number 152. The group also says Pakistan is one of the most dangerous places for journalists to work.