ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on Friday expressed grave concern over the government’s decision to join US President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace without taking the nation and parliament into confidence, particularly amid the world’s criminal silence over continued Israeli expansion in the West Bank and its ongoing genocidal campaign in the Gaza Strip against innocent Palestinians.
The party said that Pakistan’s role in global peace initiatives must strengthen the United Nations framework rather than promote parallel arrangements that weaken international law and accountability. It was also emphasized that any initiative claiming to advance peace while excluding the very people under occupation contradicts the fundamental principles of justice and self-determination that the PTI has always stood for.
The “Board of Peace” also lacks credibility as Palestinians remain excluded from the process, while Israel continues to be included, even as violence persists in the Gaza Strip and the occupied West Bank. A peace mechanism without Palestinian representation can only be termed as control.
In a strongly worded statement issued by the PTI Central Media Department, the party strongly criticised the government’s “myopic decision,” stating that it had been taken in total disregard of its long-term catastrophic implications for the Palestinians and the Muslim Ummah.
The party emphasized that the Israeli rogue state must be reined in without further delay, as it continues to pursue a policy of ethnic cleansing against the Palestinians.
The PTI raised questions over Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s unilateral decision to attend the inaugural meeting of this Board and making statements that compromise Pakistan’s dignity, independent foreign policy and historically principled stance on oppressed peoples.
The party urged the prime minister to take the nation and parliament into confidence without any further delay, warning that the people would not accept any imposed plan regarding the future of Palestinians, particularly any attempt to forcibly disarm Hamas.
It warned that the dangerous designs by Israel to forcibly annex the Palestinian territory pose a direct threat to regional stability and constitute a violation of international law. The party urged the government to reconsider its decision and to align its foreign policy with the will of the people and principles of justice, human rights and international accountability.
The PTI stood firmly with the Palestinian people and categorically rejected any plan imposed without their consent. The party reiterated its unwavering support for a just and lasting resolution through an independent and sovereign Palestinian state, with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital, in accordance with international law and long-standing PTI policy.
