Israel’s adventurism in region unacceptable: FO

ISLAMABAD: Foreign Office spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch on Thursday strongly condemned the recent attack on the Iranian consulate in Syria and said that the Israeli “adventurism” in the region was unacceptable.

The Foreign Office spokesperson, in her weekly press briefing, said Israel must be held accountable for its irresponsible attack, for its unabated atrocities in Gaza as well as the attack in an already volatile region.

“Israel’s adventurism in the region reached a new height with its irresponsible attack this week on the consular section of the Iranian Embassy in Damascus, Syria. The attack is a violation of the UN Charter, international law, and Conventions,” she remarked.

She said over the past six months, Israeli authorities had been involved in cross and systematic violations of international humanitarian law by repeatedly targeting UNRWA, humanitarian relief organisations, and unarmed civilians, the official news agency reported.

“The deliberate targeting of a humanitarian convoy bringing food to people facing famine is a serious violation of international humanitarian law.”

Condemning the Israeli attacks on humanitarian convoys in Gaza, she called for international accountability of Israel for its crimes besides seeking “immediate, full, and effective” implementation of the provisional orders of the International Court of Justice.

“We also reiterate our call for the full and expeditious implementation of the UN Security Council Resolution 2728, adopted on 25th of March, leading to a permanent ceasefire, lifting of all barriers to the provision of humanitarian assistance, and ensuring protection of civilians throughout the Gaza Strip,” the spokesperson said.

She also condemned Thursday’s terrorist attack in the cities of Rask and Chabahar in Iran’s south-eastern province of Sistan and Baluchestan, and conveyed Pakistan’s solidarity with the government and people of Iran.

Mentioning the ongoing visit of a high-level Iranian delegation to Pakistan, she said both countries had “re-engaged and re-established” all communication channels as existed before January this year.

She said the government and the people of Pakistan looked forward to the visit of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi.

Discussing the terrorist attack in Bisham that had killed Chinese nationals, the spokesperson said the law enforcement agencies were probing the incident and reiterated Pakistan’s commitment to fighting terrorism.

She said the projects being executed by Chinese firms faced a temporary freeze following the terrorist attack but the work was resumed following the security audit.

To a question, she reiterated that Pakistan would not hold any talks with TTP and expected the Afghan interim government to take action against the militant groups or forces involved in carrying out terror activities inside Pakistan.

About the repatriation of illegal foreign nationals, the spokesperson said the policy was not Afghan-specific rather it featured the repatriation of all foreign nationals illegally staying in Pakistan. She said a limited number of foreigners were deported as the majority had returned voluntarily.

She said there was no change in Pakistan’s one-visa policy as all foreigners coming to Pakistan should carry valid passports and visas.

She told the media that Secretary of National Security Division Waqar Ahmed visited Astana, Kazakhstan, to attend the 19th meeting of the Secretaries of the Security Council of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) which discussed the strategic security issues affecting the SCO member states with a focus on terrorism, extremism, human and transnational crimes.

In his statement, the secretary warned about the far-reaching impacts of the terrorist acts in the region and called for a comprehensive strategy to address the root causes of terrorism.

The spokesperson informed the media that Pakistan’s Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Usman Jadoon was elected as chairman of the UN Disarmament Commission for the year 2024.

She expressed the hope that during his chairmanship, Ambassador Jadoon would uphold the principles of multilateralism, dialogue, and collaboration, and promote the mandate of the UN Disarmament Commission to consider and make recommendations on various problems in the field of disarmament.

Highlighting the situation in the Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK), the spokesperson said the Indian occupation authorities had once again decided to deny permission to hold Eidul Fitr prayers at Eidgah in Srinagar.

She said the chief cleric of Srinagar’s historic Jamia Mosque and senior Kashmiri leader Mirwaiz Umer Farooq had been placed under house detention to prevent him from attending an event held in the memory of his ancestors.

“We urge the Indian authorities to respect the right of the people of IIOJK to peaceful assembly and to freely practise their religion. Pakistan will continue to extend political, diplomatic, and moral support to our Kashmiri brothers and sisters for the just and peaceful settlement of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute in accordance with the UN Security Council resolutions,” she remarked.