Jeddah, August 25, 2025: Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister (DPM/FM) Mohammad Ishaq Dar on Monday strongly condemned Israel’s “highly escalatory and dangerous statements” over Palestine and outlined immediate measures needed to alleviate the suffering of Palestinians.
Speaking at the 21st Extraordinary Session of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM) in Jeddah, Dar said Israel’s recent statements, including plans to extend full military control over Gaza and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s allusion to a so-called “Greater Israel”, revealed a “rogue annexationist mindset.”
He stressed that the international community must act urgently as Gaza continues to bleed under “systematic, premeditated and deliberate” violations of international law, including UN Security Council resolutions and the International Court of Justice’s judgment.
“Gaza has become a graveyard for innocent lives as well as for international law,” he said, noting that more than 60,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have been killed in Israel’s military assault. He denounced the targeting of hospitals, schools, UN facilities, aid convoys, and refugee camps as deliberate acts of collective punishment.
Dar said Gaza was facing a “full-scale humanitarian catastrophe,” marked by indiscriminate bombardment, blockade, famine, and deprivation, while violence and dispossession escalated in the West Bank and Jerusalem. He described Israel’s so-called humanitarian system as a “cruel illusion.”
The DPM/FM reaffirmed Pakistan’s categorical rejection of Israel’s recent announcements, saying they aimed to entrench illegal occupation by coercion. He also endorsed statements issued by the Arab-Islamic Ministerial Committee and 31 Arab-Islamic countries, along with the OIC, Arab League, and GCC, condemning Israel’s “outrageous” reference to a “Greater Israel.”
Citing Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s position, Dar said: “The root cause of this ongoing tragedy is Israel’s prolonged, illegal occupation of Palestinian territory. As long as this occupation endures, peace will remain elusive.”
He reiterated Pakistan’s solidarity with Arab states in safeguarding their sovereignty and territorial integrity, while urging stronger global support for Palestinian statehood and UN membership.
Dar presented seven urgent steps to end Palestinian suffering:
- Immediate, permanent and unconditional ceasefire across Gaza and the Occupied Palestinian Territory, with implementation of UNSC Resolution 2735.
- Unfettered humanitarian access to all civilians in need, and protection of aid workers and UN staff.
- Renewed international support for UNRWA, vital for millions of Palestinians.
- End to forced displacement, illegal settlement expansion, and annexation, especially in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
- Implementation of the Arab and OIC reconstruction plan for Gaza for recovery, rehabilitation, and sustainable development.
- Revival of a genuine, time-bound political process for a two-state solution based on pre-1967 borders with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as the Palestinian capital.
- Accountability for war crimes and crimes against humanity, ensuring Israel cannot act with impunity.
Dar warned that any desecration of Al-Aqsa Mosque or incursions into Al-Quds Al-Sharif would be an intolerable provocation and a direct challenge to the Muslim Ummah.
He urged the UN Security Council to impose consequences on Israel for defying international consensus, including the deployment of an international protection force for Gaza as proposed in the 20th Extraordinary CFM.
“Palestine is a priority for Pakistan. As a non-permanent member of the UNSC, Pakistan will continue to work with the OIC and Arab partners to mobilize global support for the Palestinian right to self-determination, justice, and peace,” he said.
Dar concluded by calling it a defining moment for the Muslim world: “The Palestinian people do not seek statements of sympathy; they need concrete measures. Another Nakba must not be allowed to happen.”
