Pakistan

Israel must be held accountable for genocide of Palestinians: FM Jillani

interim minister says in contact with Egypt and Greece regarding Palestinians

News Desk November 24, 2023

ISLAMABAD:

Interim Foreign Minister Jalil Abbas Jilani on Friday said Israel should be held accountable for committing genocide against Palestinians during the current conflict in the besieged enclave of Gaza.

Speaking during a session in the Senate, the foreign minister asserted that the situation in Gaza is grave and more than 15,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli bombardment, along with severe damage to health facilities.

Jilani said Israel is committing war crimes in Gaza. He added that Hamas holds around 200 Israeli prisoners while Israel has 7,200 Palestinian prisoners, while referring to a telephonic conversation with the President of Palestine Mahmoud Abbas.

The interim minister maintained that he is in contact with Egypt and Greece regarding the injured in Gaza and Tel Aviv's permission is required to evacuate the wounded from the besieged enclave.

Read In Gaza, hospital procedures without anaesthetics prompted screams, prayers

Furthermore, he added, that the narrative of Israel and Western countries holds no significant importance right now. He further said Pakistan's active role in the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) meeting was appreciated by the United Nations (UN).

Read OIC condemns Israeli war crimes

Earlier, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), in an extraordinary meeting in Jeddah, termed the attack on the al-Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza a “war crime," strongly rejecting the Israeli claims that it was not behind the bombing.

The meeting of the OIC Executive Committee was held in Jeddah, the same day when US President Biden was in Israel to show solidarity with the Jewish state, and his country vetoed a UN Security Council resolution that would have condemned the Israeli atrocities.

The Senate session was adjourned until 3pm on Monday.