Pakistan delegation walks out during Israeli PM's UNGA speech

The Pakistani delegation to the UN General Assembly staged a walkout in protest as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took the podium.

Video footage widely shared on social media showed the Pakistani delegation walking out of the UNGA hall.

“Pakistani delegation led by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif walked out as Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahi took the podium after PM Shehbaz’s speech,” the foreign office said, as it shared a video of the walkout with reporters.

Several delegations including Pakistan’s walked out as Netanyahu approached the lectern while supporters in the gallery cheered.

Addressing the 79th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif demanded an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, terming it a ‘systematic slaughter’ and ‘bloodshed’ by the Israeli military .

“Illegal occupation creates a fresh hell, every day, in the killing fields of Palestine, and in occupied Jammu and Kashmir… Can we turn a blind eye to the mothers, cradling the lifeless bodies of their children? This is not just a conflict, this is a systematic slaughter of innocent Palestinians. An assault on the very essence of human life and dignity, the blood of Gazan children stains not just the hands of the oppressors but also those complicit in prolonging this cruel conflict.”

He said humanity died when the ‘endless suffering ‘of Palestinians was ignored.

“It is not enough to condemn and we must act now and demand an immediate end to this bloodshed. We must remember that the blood and sacrifice of innocent Palestinians will never go to waste. We must worry about their plight and difficulties and stand by them.”