Pakistan, Iran calls for ‘coordinated efforts’ for end to Gaza massacre

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Iran have underscored the need for coordinated efforts by the Islamic countries to bring an end to the ongoing massacre and crimes against humanity in Gaza, ARY News reported on Wednesday.  

The demand was made during a telephonic conversation between President Dr Arif Alvi and Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi today.

During the conversation which lasted almost 45 minutes, President Alvi voiced deep concern over the dire situation in occupied Palestine including Gaza as a result of ongoing Israeli aggression and occupation.

He regretted that despite the deaths of over 19,000 Palestinians including women and children, the UN Security Council has failed to impose a ceasefire and bring an end to the unspeakable Israeli atrocities.

President Alvi reiterated that a just solution to the Palestinian question based on an independent and contiguous Palestinian State with Al-Quds-Al-Sharif as capital was critical for lasting peace in the Middle East.

The president reaffirmed Pakistan’s support for all diplomatic initiatives to this end and appreciated Iran’s concerns and initiatives about the ongoing situation.

He also appreciated the Iranian leadership for its principled stance on the Jammu and Kashmir dispute and its support for the Palestinian cause.

President Alvi conveyed his heartfelt condolences to the government and people of Iran over the heinous terrorist attack on an Iranian police station in Siestan-Baluchistan on December 15. He expressed Pakistan’s resolve to work with Iran to combat terrorism.

As the two leaders discussed bilateral economic cooperation, the president termed the joint inauguration of Mand-Pishin Border Sustenance Marketplace and Gabd-Polan Electricity Transmission Line as tangible developments that would further strengthen bilateral ties between the two brotherly countries.

The two leaders agreed that Pakistan and Iran were brotherly Islamic countries, sharing the same culture, religion, and history.

They agreed to work together to further improve the two brotherly countries’ economic, trade, and cultural relations.

Israel has lost 132 soldiers in the fighting inside Gaza since it invaded the territory in response to the Oct. 7 raid by Hamas that Israel says killed 1,200 people and saw 240 people taken hostage.

The Gaza health ministry said on Tuesday that 19,667 Palestinians had been killed and 52,586 wounded in the war. The U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees UNRWA said more than 60% of Gaza’s infrastructure had been destroyed or damaged and more than 90% of the 2.3 million population uprooted.