By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: Twenty countries, including Pakistan, issued a sharp rebuke of Israel’s military strikes on Iran on Tuesday, labeling them a violation of international law and calling for a nuclear-free Middle East as tensions soared after five days of relentless missile exchanges between the two nations.
The joint statement followed Israel’s surprise airstrikes on Iranian nuclear and military facilities last Friday, launched amid Tehran’s ongoing nuclear talks with Washington. Iran responded with its own barrage of missiles targeting strategic sites in Israel, and the tit-for-tat strikes have continued unabated, killing civilians on both sides and stoking fears of a broader regional war.
In their collective statement, the 20 nations, among them Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Türkiye, Qatar, and Oman, voiced a “categorical rejection” of Israel’s actions and warned of their destabilizing fallout.
“[There is an] imperative need to halt Israeli hostilities against Iran, which come during a time of increasing tension in the Middle East, and to work toward de-escalation, to achieve a comprehensive ceasefire and restoration of calm,” the statement said.
The signatories pressed for “the urgent necessity of establishing a Middle East Zone Free of Nuclear Weapons and Other Weapons of Mass Destruction,” insisting that all regional states join the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT).
They also condemned attacks on nuclear facilities safeguarded by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), calling them breaches of international humanitarian law and the 1949 Geneva Conventions.
With no end to the fighting in sight, the countries stressed that diplomacy remains the only path forward. “Diplomacy, dialogue, and adherence to the principles of good neighborliness, in accordance with international law and the UN Charter, remain the only viable path to resolving crises in the region,” the statement said. “Military means cannot bring about a lasting resolution to the ongoing crisis.”
Mounting Regional Concerns
The escalating conflict prompted a separate exchange between Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates on Tuesday. Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar spoke by phone with his UAE counterpart, Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, about the worsening situation. “They expressed deep concern over the escalating tensions and underscored the urgent need to support efforts for ensuring regional peace and stability,” Pakistan’s foreign office said in a statement.
The two leaders’ discussion reflected broader anxieties about the conflict’s ripple effects, including potential threats to maritime security and freedom of navigation along shipping lanes critical to global trade, a concern echoed in the joint statement.
Outrage Over Attack on Iranian Media
In Karachi, dozens of Pakistani journalists took to the streets on Tuesday to protest Israel’s bombing of Iran’s state-run television channel, accusing Tel Aviv of targeting media workers to suppress their voices.
The strike on the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) building killed Nima Rajabpour, editor-in-chief of Khabar TV, and Masoumeh Azimi, a secretary, according to the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ).
Footage of anchor Sahar Emami denouncing Israel moments before a blast cut off her live broadcast went viral on Monday, amplifying outrage.
Organized by the Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ) and the Karachi Union of Journalists (KUJ), the demonstration outside the Karachi Press Club saw journalists waving placards and chanting in solidarity with Gaza and Iran.
“The media of Pakistan in general and Karachi in particular firmly stands against Israel aggression and assaults on journalists,” KUJ President Nasrullah Chaudhry told the crowd.
Veteran journalist Mazhar Abbas called the attack a “direct assault on freedom of expression,” pointing to the Committee to Protect Journalists’ count of 178 media workers killed in Gaza by Israel since October 2023, a toll he said surpasses that of World War II.
Fears of Spillover
As the Israel-Iran conflict intensifies, Pakistan’s Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal vowed that Islamabad would not let militants in neighboring Iran and Afghanistan exploit the chaos to escalate attacks within its borders.
Balochistan, Pakistan’s southwestern province bordering both countries, has seen a spike in violence from separatist groups seeking greater control over its resources.
“Pakistan leadership has recently had very good, close coordination with both the leadership in Iran and with leadership in Afghanistan ensuring that their soil is not used by the terrorist groups to carry out terrorist attacks in the country,” Iqbal told reporters in Islamabad.
He described the militants as “Indian-sponsored” and expressed confidence that Pakistani forces could contain them, citing a recent victory in a brief military clash with India brokered into a ceasefire by Washington on May 10.
Iqbal also sought to reassure Iran, saying, “We hope and are confident that the leadership in Iran will also exercise its full jurisdiction to make sure that no groups use the territory of Iran to carry out any terrorist action in Pakistan.”
Turning to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a cornerstone of Beijing’s $65 billion investment in Pakistan, Iqbal dismissed concerns that the Israel-Iran fighting would derail progress.
“Chinese are very convinced that Pakistan is fully committed to improving the security situation in the country,” he said, noting that the conflict’s distance from Pakistan insulated the project. He added that a key CPEC meeting slated for late July would greenlight the next phase of development.
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