ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Tuesday voiced serious concern over the dire situation prevailing throughout the Occupied Palestinian Territories despite several diplomatic advances, as also testified by recent briefings in the UN.
Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the UN, has put forward Pakistan’s eight priorities that are critical to ensure peace efforts translate into meaningful progress.
While addressing a UN Security Council briefing on the Middle East, including the Palestinian Question, he said “Ceasefire violations persist. Israeli airstrikes have killed and injured civilians, including children; more than 300 Palestinians have reportedly been killed since the ceasefire announcement. This reveals a stark truth: peace declared in words has not yet brought full protection and stability on the ground. Lives are still being lost, homes are still being demolished, and families remain in fear.”
In a stark reminder, the ambassador, while recalling the devastating war in Gaza, said it had inflicted untold suffering on the Palestinian people in the Strip – blockaded, bombarded, besieged, starved – with over 70,000 martyred, mostly women and children, and almost the entire socio-economic infrastructure reduced to rubble. Demands for a ceasefire had gone unheeded, while calls for accountability had been met with complete impunity. “The situation in the West Bank is no less grave. Israeli settler and military violence have escalated to unprecedented levels, with October recording the highest number of settler attacks since the UN began monitoring in 2006. Entire communities have been displaced, especially in the northern West Bank, amid closures, raids and increasing intimidation. Palestinians must be allowed to return to their homes, and communities must be able to function without constant fear,” he said.
The ambassador outlined several priorities to ensure that peace efforts translate into meaningful progress. First, implement Resolution 2803 in good faith, thus maintaining the momentum generated by the Sharm El-Sheikh Summit, particularly advancing Palestinian-led and owned governance, reconstruction and institutional capacity. The Palestinian Authority’s role is central; peace cannot be negotiated over the heads of the Palestinian people. We hope that there will be more clarity on various aspects of Resolution 2803 going forward. Let me reiterate that, together with the US and other Arab-Islamic countries, Pakistan joined this process, as it offers a pathway to Palestinian self-determination and statehood.
Second, ensure full adherence to the ceasefire with zero tolerance for unilateral actions, leading to a permanent cessation of hostilities and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza. We strongly condemn the attacks by Israeli occupying forces across Gaza. Third, guarantee unhindered humanitarian access. With winter approaching, Gaza’s exhausted, displaced and traumatised population requires full protection and assistance at scale. Obstruction of humanitarian assistance is a violation of international humanitarian law and must end. Fourth, recovery and reconstruction of Gaza must commence without delay.
Fifth, there must be no annexation and no forced displacement under any circumstances. The territorial integrity of Gaza and its contiguity with the West Bank are indispensable for a viable, sovereign and independent State of Palestine. Sixth, bring an immediate end to Israel’s illegal settlement expansion and all attempts to alter the demographic or legal character of the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including the historic status of Al-Haram Al-Sharif.
Seventh, ensure accountability for grave violations of international law. Because without justice, there can be no sustainable peace. Eighth, to break the cycle of violence, it is necessary to end the Israeli occupation of all Arab territories, including in Palestine, Syria and Lebanon. There must be a political horizon – a credible, time-bound political process anchored in relevant UN resolutions, leading to a sovereign, independent and contiguous State of Palestine based on the pre-1967 borders with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital, the ambassador concluded.
