ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Tuesday strongly condemned the latest “provocative actions by Israeli occupying power as well as illegal settlers” that aim to undermine the religious, historical and legal status of the Al-Aqsa Mosque.
Spokesman of the Foreign Office Shafaqat Ali Khan in a statement on Tuesday said such actions are unacceptable and constitute a flagrant violation of international law, and have the potential to further escalate an already volatile situation in the region.
The spokesman called for upholding the sanctity and historical status of the holy sites and preventing Israel from any further provocations.
“Pakistan also strongly deplores the continued targeting of the Palestinian civilians in Gaza by the occupying power. The latest reprehensible attack against a school sheltering displaced families in Gaza is an example of continued Israeli impunity”, the spokesman said.
He said the harrowing images being witnessed by the world in the aftermath of the attack that resulted in dozens of deaths, many of them children, should be a wake-up call for the international community.
These attacks must end forthwith, and Israel must be held accountable for its heinous crimes, the spokesman said.
Pakistan reiterates its unwavering support for the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination and calls for the establishment of an independent, viable and contiguous Palestinian state based on pre-1967 borders, with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital”, the spokesman concluded.
It may be recalled that right-wing Israelis in Jerusalem have stormed the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound and a United Nations facility for Palestinian refugees as an annual march took place marking Israel’s conquest of the eastern part of the city.
Some Israelis chanted, “Death to Arabs” and “May your village burn,” as they marched through the alleyways of Jerusalem’s Old City on Monday, going through the Muslim quarter to mark “Jerusalem Day”, which commemorates the Israeli occupation and annexation of East Jerusalem after the 1967 war.
