Israel visit controversy

Unfortunately, some in Pakistan would rather malign the country by claiming the delegation was “official”

Comments by Israeli President Isaac Herzog during the World Economic Forum have reignited what started as a social media controversy over a visit to Israel by a “Pakistani” delegation. Herzog was speaking in the context of improvements in ties with several countries under the Abraham Accords — the term used to refer to the normalisation of ties between Israel and some Muslim countries in 2020. The Israeli president mentioned how there is increasing interaction with other countries, but only one of his examples referred to a country that does not have ties with Israel. However, the delegation was technically not “from Pakistan”, but rather was a joint effort by US and Israeli NGOs. The US NGO was apparently run by Pakistani Americans who, according to social media, seem to have “links” with every major political party in Pakistan.

While some people questioned how Pakistanis were even allowed to enter Israel, the answer is actually quite well-known. Israel allows travellers from several countries with which it has no ties to enter using a separate on-arrival paper visa document to enter the country. This means that a Pakistani with an approved reason for travel can go to Jordan — or other countries with which Israel has this travel arrangement — and then drive in and out of Israel, but their passports will only have Jordanian stamps. This is probably how at least one delegation member — a Pakistani journalist who claims to have no foreign nationality — managed to enter the country. Still, amid the hullabaloo, we forget that this delegation had no official standing as far as Pakistan is concerned; it was a bunch of private citizens, mostly Pakistani-Americans, speaking in their private capacity.

The Pakistani government and ministers have also pointed this out, noting that Pakistan’s position remains to back the Palestinians and through the “establishment of an independent, viable and contiguous Palestinian state with pre-1967 borders and [Jerusalem] as its capital”. Till the time this becomes a reality, Pakistan refuses to recognise Israel. Unfortunately, some in Pakistan, including former PTI ministers, would rather malign the country by claiming the delegation was “official” and using anti-Semitic language, rather than sticking to the facts and reserving their ire for the participants.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 30^th, 2022.

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