Islamabad, 10 August 2024 (TDI): Pakistan would support all efforts to prevent tensions escalating in the Middle East, the Foreign Office said on Friday.
The Middle East is bracing for a possible new wave of attacks by Iran and its allies following the recent killings of senior Hamas and Hezbollah figures in Tehran and Beirut.
We also believe that a war in the Middle East must be avoided, and Islamabad will therefore support all efforts to prevent a war in the region, Foreign Office spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch told a media briefing.
Baloch said that a recent OIC meeting had held Israel responsible for the murder of Ismail Haniyeh.
She recalled that Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar had expressed unequivocal condemnation of Israel’s war-mongering, brutalities and its actions that have caused irreparable damage to the already fragile and volatile region. Dar also called for preventing further escalation of tensions and violence in the region, she added.
Brushing aside the proposition that Islamabad was sending arms to Iran, she termed these “baseless reports with malicious agenda behind them”. This is a critical time in the Middle East, she said, urging all stakeholders to be wary of “fake news”.
During Friday’s media briefing, Baloch also rejected all speculation about Islamabad being involved in the ouster of former Bangladesh premier Sheikh Hasina
Reacting to media reports accusing Pakistani intelligence agencies of playing a role in the collapse of Sheikh Hasina government in Bangladesh, Baloch called it New Delhi’s “disturbing obsession” with Islamabad.
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She said that Indian political leaders and their media habitually accused Pakistan for their failures in domestic and foreign policy, adding that Islamabad and Dhaka had positive relations, which had only continued to grow.
She said that the government and people of Pakistan have expressed their solidarity and support with the people of Bangladesh and Islamabad sincerely hoped for a peaceful and swift return to normalcy.
Farkhund Yousafzai is an Associate Editor at The Diplomatic Insight.
