By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar arrived in Jeddah on Monday to attend an extraordinary session of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation’s Council of Foreign Ministers (OIC-CFM), convened to address Israel’s intensifying military campaign in Gaza and its controversial plan to seize control of Gaza City, the Foreign Office said.
Dar was received at King Abdulaziz International Airport by Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the OIC, Ambassador Fawad Sher, Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Ahmad Farooq, and Consul General in Jeddah Khalid Majid.
The 21st Extraordinary Session of the OIC-CFM, held at the OIC Secretariat was called after Israel’s security cabinet this month approved a plan by Benjamin Netanyahu for Gaza’s military occupation. The move drew sharp condemnation and protests from several countries around the world, who urged the international community to rein in Israel from occupying Gaza by force.
“The Extraordinary Session will bring together foreign ministers and senior officials from the OIC member states to deliberate on coordinated responses to the escalating developments in Palestine, arising from the ongoing Israeli military aggression, proposed plans for full military control over Gaza, and the continuing egregious violations of Palestinian rights,” the Foreign Office said.
Since October 7, 2023, Israeli strikes have killed more than 62,000 Palestinians and injured 157,951, according to the Palestinian health ministry. Last week, the United Nations warned that Israel’s blockade of humanitarian aid has left half a million Gazans facing “catastrophic hunger,” with famine conditions threatening to spread across the enclave. Israel’s approval last week of a plan to seize Gaza City, which it describes as the “last bastion of Hamas,” has heightened fears of further devastation in the densely populated territory.
Pakistan’s Foreign Office said on Sunday that Dar would use the OIC platform to denounce Israel’s “outrageous” plan to occupy Gaza City and demand unimpeded humanitarian aid for Palestinians. “He will reaffirm Pakistan’s unwavering support for Palestine and reiterate its principled stance and call for the restoration of the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people, most notably, the establishment of an independent, contiguous, and sovereign Palestinian state,” the Foreign Office statement said.
Founded in September 1969 after Israeli attacks on Al Aqsa Mosque in occupied Jerusalem, the OIC is the world’s second-largest inter-governmental organisation after the United Nations. As a founding member, Pakistan has been a steadfast advocate for Muslim causes, championing the Palestinian and Kashmiri struggles against foreign occupation, defending Muslim rights in Myanmar and Bosnia, and seeking resolutions to conflicts in Afghanistan, Yemen, Syria, and Libya.
Israel’s plan to take control of Gaza City, approved last week, has drawn sharp international criticism. Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz vowed to press ahead, warning that Gaza City would be “razed” unless Hamas meets Israel’s demands. Hamas rejected the move as evidence of Israel’s lack of commitment to a ceasefire, stating that a truce is the only path to secure the release of Israeli prisoners.
The group held Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responsible for the captives’ safety. A proposed ceasefire deal includes a 60-day truce, the release of 10 living Israeli prisoners and 18 bodies held in Gaza, and the freeing of about 200 long-serving Palestinian prisoners detained by Israel. If implemented, the temporary truce would lead to talks for a permanent ceasefire, including the release of the remaining Israeli prisoners.
Netanyahu said last Thursday that Israel was prepared to resume negotiations immediately to secure the release of all 50 Israeli prisoners held by Hamas, around 20 of whom are believed to be alive, and end the nearly two-year conflict, but only on terms acceptable to Israel.
The Jeddah session underscores the OIC’s determination to address the worsening Gaza crisis. Member states are expected to call for urgent action to alleviate Palestinian suffering, uphold their rights under international law, and counter Israel’s plans for further military escalation.
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