Pakistan rejects Trump’s Gaza displacement proposal as ‘deeply troubling and unjust’

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s foreign office said on Thursday any proposal to displace the people of Gaza was “deeply troubling and unjust,” emphasizing that Palestinian land rightfully belongs to the Palestinian people.
The statement comes days after former US President Donald Trump suggested that Palestinians residing in Gaza should be resettled in Egypt, Jordan or other countries while addressing the media alongside visiting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The proposal was rejected by both Egypt and Jordan, prompting condemnation from various international rights groups as well.
“The proposal to displace the people of Gaza is deeply troubling and unjust,” foreign office spokesperson Shafqat Ali Khan told reporters during a weekly press briefing. “Palestinian land belongs to the Palestinian people.”
He said the only viable way to resolve the Israel-Palestine conflict was through a two-state solution, as recommended in United Nations Security Council resolutions.
“Pakistan’s position on the issue of Palestine is very clear, as Pakistan has been and will continue to stand by the people of Palestine in their just struggle for self-determination, as well as for the establishment of a sovereign, independent and contiguous Palestinian state based on pre-1967 borders,” he added.
Pakistan does not recognize Israel and calls for an independent Palestinian state based on internationally agreed parameters.
The spokesperson also condemned Israel’s restrictions on the flow of aid, shelters and necessary medical equipment to Gaza, saying it was in violation of the ceasefire deal.
“As per the agreement, 60,000 trailers and 200,000 tents were supposed to enter Gaza, and the deal also required Israel to allow equipment to help clear the way to reach Gaza,” he noted.
Khan said Pakistan called upon the international community to break its silence on the blatant violation of the ceasefire agreement by Israel and its “atrocities” against Palestinians.
“The international community must step up and ensure that the ceasefire agreement is honored in letter and spirit,” he added.
“We call for enhanced, unhindered humanitarian assistance to those in urgent need, opening up all access points of supply to Gaza, and for allowing all UN and international agencies, including UNRWA [United Nations Relief and Works Agency], to operate fully in Gaza,” he added.
Speaking about the situation in Syria since the fall of the Bashar Assad regime, Khan said Syria remained a significant country in the Islamic world, highlighting its cultural influence, people-to-people connections and historic ties through faith, language and history.
“We will support any initiative for a stable Syria and restoration of peace and stability after years of civil war,” he added.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif also welcomed Ahmed Al-Sharaa as Syria’s new president last week while expressing his desire for peace in the country. Sharaa, who led the campaign that ousted Bashar Assad, was declared president for a transitional phase and given authority to form a temporary legislative council, with the Syrian constitution suspended.