Pakistan concerned over Israeli plan to annex illegally occupied West Bank

Pakistan on Thursday expressed grave concerns over Israeli plan to annex the illegally occupied West Bank and reiterated its call for establishment of a viable, independent and contiguous State of Palestine with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital.

Speaking at her weekly media briefing, Foreign Office spokesperson Aisha Farooqui referred to the reports about the framework agreement by Israel's coalition government proposing "annexation" of the West Bank, saying that Pakistan noted those reports with grave concern. "Pakistan opposed to any move for annexation of the occupied Palestinian territories as it would be a serious violation of international law and a dangerous escalation in an already volatile situation," she said.

Farooqui asserted that the West Bank and Jordan valley were Palestinian territories, illegally occupied by Israel since 1967. "Pakistan supports the position adopted by the UN and OIC on the issue of Palestine and calls upon the international community to uphold and support the rights of the Palestinians," she added.

She reiterated Pakistan's consistent support for the two-state solution of the Palestine issue as enshrined in the relevant Security Council and General Assembly resolutions.

"Pakistan renews its call for establishment of a viable, independent and contiguous State of Palestine, on the basis of internationally-agreed parameters, the pre-1967 borders, and with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital. We would also like to underscore that the Jammu and Kashmir dispute and Palestinian issue continue to be the longest standing items on the UN and OIC agenda," she stated.

She pointed out that the attempts being made by the occupying powers in Palestine and Indian occupied Jammu and Kashmir are essentially similar, particularly with reference to human rights violations, seeking to alter the demographic structure, and posing threat to peace and security.

Both those situations were worsening and call for urgent attention of the international community, she added.

She reiterated Pakistan's strong condemnation of the continuing extra judicial killings by Indian occupation forces in fake encounters and phony cordon and search operations in the occupied Jammu and Kashmir.

She said that for the last 284 days of the continued oppression, India forces continued deliberate acts of terrorizing, inhuman lockdown and military siege faced by the innocent people in the Indian occupied Jammu and Kashmir.

In April alone, she pointed out that Indian occupation forces martyred 33 Kashmiris and seriously injured over 150 with complete impunity under draconian laws such as Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA), Public Safety Act (PSA) and Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA).

"India must realize that it cannot suppress the will of Kashmiri people and their indigenous movement against the illegal Indian occupation," she said, adding the rightful struggle of Kashmiri people will continue till the realization of their right to self-determination in accordance with the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) Resolutions.

She urged the international community to take immediate notice of the alarming situation in IOJ&K and hold India accountable for state-terrorism, extra-judicial killings, and gross and systematic violations of human rights.

The spokesperson also reiterated Pakistan's condemnation of the cowardly terrorist attack on a medical facility in Kabul as well as the suicide attack at a funeral in Nangarhar province, which resulted in loss of precious lives.

About repatriation of the stranded Pakistanis from different countries, she said that so far 24,466 have been repatriated from more than 35 countries, she said, adding that weekly number of nationals returning home has been steadily increased from 2,000 to about 7,000 per week.

About the steps taken for overseas Pakistanis who have lost their jobs in the Gulf countries, she said the leadership was fully cognizant of the difficulties being faced by our compatriots in many parts of the world.

In order to provide relief in this crisis situation, the matter related to their employment especially in GCC countries has been part of the discussions during the recent diplomatic outreach, she said, adding "the matter we hope would be reviewed in a positive light by the authorities in these countries."

To a question about India's constant violations of the Indus Water Treaty (IWT), she said Pakistan's concerns on that score were well known, adding Pakistan had unambiguously raised its concerns with India via the mechanisms provided within the Treaty and would continue to pursue a resolution of those issues through all possible avenues.

Responding another query, she said Pakistan had granted India consular access to its convicted spy Commander Kulbushan Jadhav and was processing measures for effective review and reconsideration as per the guidelines provided by ICJ in its Judgment. "Being a responsible state, Pakistan abides by all its international obligations and will continue doing so," she added.

Responding another query about situation on Pak-Iran border, she said Pakistan and Iran shared common border of more than 900 kilometers, adding Pakistan-Iran border was also called the "Border of Peace and Friendship".

She said that relevant authorities from both countries had been in coordination to manage the regular flow of people and enhance bilateral trade. The two sides also remained in touch to ensure that criminal elements did not get any space to create misunderstanding between the two countries," she added.

On Afghan peace process, she said that efforts were underway to help get the intra-Afghan negotiations initiated, which was the next logical step after the signing of the US-Taliban Peace Agreement. "We hope that these efforts are successful at the earliest," she added.

Asked to comment on Afghan President Ghani's ordering forces to switch from defensive to offensive mode in the wake of recent terror attacks, she said Pakistan believed that the US-Taliban Peace Agreement had provided a window of opportunity to the people of Afghanistan to work together for the ultimate aim of peace and reconciliation in Afghanistan. "We hope that the Peace Agreement is implemented in its entirety so that it leads to the next stage of Intra-Afghan negotiations," she added.

About bilateral trade between Pakistan and Afghanistan, she said Pakistan was fully cognizant of the difficulties being faced by the traders from Pakistan and Afghanistan.

She said that a number of steps have been taken in this regard to facilitate the movement of people and cargo trucks and containers, adding that Pakistan has opened border crossing point at Chaman and Torkham to ease cross border movement of trucks.

The current mechanism is functioning and any modification in it to enhance trade between the two countries will be considered after implementing all necessary protocols related to Covid-19, she added.