Pakistan all-parties conference urges OIC to call emergency summit on Gaza war

ISLAMABAD: An All Parties Conference (APC) in Pakistan on Monday called on the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to convene an emergency summit to address the situation in Palestine, with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announcing the formation of a special working group to engage other Islamic countries in raising a collective voice on Israel’s ongoing military campaign in Gaza.

The APC came as Pakistan observed Palestine Solidarity Day to mark one year of Israeli invasion of Gaza that has claimed the lives of more than 41,800 Palestinians so far.

The conference took place at the Presidency in Islamabad, with President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Sharif, and leaders of key Pakistani political parties in attendance.

Speaking at the APC, PM Sharif said it was time for the Muslim World to move forward and take practical steps to prevent Israel from further bloodshed in Palestine.

“Pakistan has decided to form a special working group which will go to different lobbies and reach out to other countries in the Islamic world to raise a collective voice against Israeli atrocities,” he said.

“The first priority should be to stop the bloodshed in Palestine, which is a foremost duty and for this, the platform of the OIC is available.”

While reading out a joint communique by all parties, Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar said the APC called for full implementation of a UN General Assembly resolution, ES 10/24 of September 18, which inter alia demanded an end to Israeli occupation.

“[This APC] calls on the OIC to convene an emerging emergency summit to discuss the situation in Palestine, Israel’s brutal aggression in the region and its implications for the regional peace and security and underscores the need for unity of the Islamic ummah,” Dar said.

He demanded implementation of provisional measures by the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which called for preventing Israel from committing further acts of genocide against the Palestinian people, as well as the ICJ’s advisory opinion of July 19 that reaffirmed the illegality of the Israeli occupation.

Dar said the APC expressed full support for the ongoing political and diplomatic efforts by the OIC, the League of Arab States, the United Nations and brotherly countries in addressing the prevailing situation in Palestine as well as for peace and stability of the broader region.

In his speech at the conference, President Zardari regretted the fact that the international community had failed to stop Israel from committing the “genocide” in Palestine.

“The prevailing culture of impunity and disregard for international law must be urgently addressed and it is crucial for the international community to take swift action to de-escalate the situation,” he said.

The president reiterated Pakistan’s firm support and vowed to continue raising its voice at all regional and international forums to stop Israel’s human rights violations and aggression against the Palestinians.

Nawaz Sharif, a three-time former prime minister and the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party supremo, questioned the world silence on Israel’s “genocide and war crimes” in Gaza.

“The government should contact the Islamic community after preparing recommendations for an effective role in the Palestine conflict, reflecting the nation’s desire to contribute decisively,” he said.

Nawaz urged Muslim countries to unite and develop a joint strategy to stop the ongoing bloodshed in Palestine.

“We have not seen such atrocities anywhere in the world as those being committed by Israel, yet many countries do not recognize it as a humanitarian crisis,” he added.

Speaking at the conference, Jamiat Ulema Islam (JUI) leader Maulana Fazlur Rehman called for practical steps to help the Palestinians, instead of “passing resolutions and issuing condemnations.”

“A joint platform of leading Muslim countries should be formed to evolve a common strategy to face multiple challenges in Palestine,” he added.

Jamaat-e-Islami chief Naeem-ur-Rehman said Pakistan had to take a very clear stance on Israeli brutalities against the Palestinians.

“Pakistan should take steps to convene a meeting of the Islamic countries to adopt a common stance in this regard,” he said, adding that Islamabad should play a proactive role to launch a diplomatic campaign to highlight this issue at world fora.

Pakistan does not recognize nor have diplomatic relations with Israel and calls for an independent Palestinian state based on “internationally agreed parameters” and the pre-1967 borders with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital.

Since the beginning of Israel’s war on Gaza, Pakistan has repeatedly raised the issue at the United Nations, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and other multilateral platforms and demanded international powers and bodies stop Israeli military actions in Gaza. The South Asian country has also dispatched several aid consignments for the Palestinians.