ISRAEL’S new plan to take control of Gaza City sparked outrage from the international community, with Pakistan warning that the planned occupation was merely a front for Tel Aviv to expand its genocidal military campaign against Palestinians.
The plan, approved by PM Benjamin Netanyahu’s security cabinet, comes amid growing international concern over the suffering in Gaza where a UN-backed assessment has warned that Israel’s blockade of aid is causing a famine and concerns for the safety of prisoners still held by Hamas. Under the newly approved plan to defeat Hamas, the Israeli army will prepare to take control of Gaza City while distributing humanitarian assistance to the civilian population outside combat zones, Netanyahu’s office said Friday. Hamas said the plans to occupy Gaza City and evacuate its residents constitutes a new war crime, warning that the operation would cost Israel dearly and that expanding the aggression means sacrificing the hostages.
Israel fits the definition of terrorist state for what it has done to Gazans during the last two years and what it plans to do now. The man whose arrest warrants have been issued by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) has demonstrated once again that he has scant respect for the will of the international community and international law. In his reaction, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has given words to the sentiments of the civilized world by strongly condemning the Israeli cabinet’s decision to take illegal and illegitimate control of Gaza City, reiterating Pakistan unwavering support to the establishment of an independent and sovereign State of Palestine, with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital, in line with the relevant UN and OIC resolutions. He rightly described the move as a dangerous escalation in an already catastrophic war against the people of Palestine as expansion of military operations will only worsen the already existing humanitarian crisis and derail any prospect for peace in the region. Israeli occupation of Arab/Palestinian lands is the root cause of the conflict in the region and by occupying the war ravaged territory, the Jewish state will be giving new dimension to the conflict imperiling not only regional peace but its own security as Palestinians, in no case, will sit idly and accept the move aimed at giving permanence to Israeli aggression and genocide. The international community should, therefore, intervene urgently to bring an immediate halt to Israel’s unwarranted aggression, ensure the protection of innocent civilians, and ensure the direly needed delivery of humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza. Tel Aviv must understand that Gaza belongs to the Palestinian people and is an inseparable part of Palestinian territory.
The plan also triggered swift criticism from across the globe, with China, Turkey, Britain and the UN’s rights chief as well as numerous Arab governments issuing statements of concern. UN human rights chief Volker Turk said the plan must be immediately halted and Israel should instead allow the full, unfettered flow of humanitarian aid. Staunch Israeli ally Germany, meanwhile, took the extraordinary step of halting military exports out of concern they could be used in Gaza. The Saudi foreign ministry said that Riyadh categorically condemns its persistence in committing crimes of starvation, brutal practices, and ethnic cleansing against the brotherly Palestinian people. Egypt’s foreign affairs ministry also said it condemned the plan in the strongest possible terms. No doubt, the entire world community, except a few backers of the Jewish state, have spoken forcefully and with clarity over the move, which reflects expansionist designs of Tel Aviv but the question arises whether mere statements will lead to any meaningful improvement in the ground situation for Palestinians, who are being eliminated both physically and economically. Concrete action and not mere statements will help contribute towards the goal of peace and security in the region.
