JUI-F vows to resist Israel recognition

BHAKKAR:

JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman has warned that any attempt by the government to recognize Israel will be strongly resisted by his party.

"Palestine is the land of prophets, and settling Jews there is a denial of the command of the Holy Prophet (PBUH). If Pakistan ever attempted to recognize Israel, the JUI-F's reaction would be extremely severe," Fazl said while addressing an event at a seminary in Bhakkar.

US President Donald Trump on October 17 said he expected an expansion of the Abraham Accords soon, a week after announcing a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.

"I hope to see Saudi Arabia go in, and I hope to see others go in. I think when Saudi Arabia goes in, everybody goes in," Trump said in an interview broadcast on Fox Business Network.

The Abraham Accords are a set of agreements that established diplomatic ties between Israel and several Arab states, beginning with the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain in 2020.

Fazl stated that religious seminaries are the guardians of the country's ideological frontiers and will continue to defend them.

"These are the institutions from which movements rise, ideologies are born, and the Ummah receives guidance. If the state itself begins to drive the nation away from religion, we will not remain silent," he asserted.

The Maulana reiterated that the JUI-F has always been a proponent of democracy and never taken the law into its own hands. "Governments, too, should act with patience and not deprive anyone of their democratic rights," he said.

Expressing regret over the government's attitude toward madaris, he questioned why there is a delay in opening the bank accounts of Madaris if the law has already been passed. He blamed the bureaucracy as the real root cause of confrontation in the country.

Fazl said his party wanted to protect the future of Pakistan's children. "We do not oppose English or modern education but we will never allow Islam to be excluded from the curriculum."