Islamabad, Nov 11 (IANS): The ongoing Israel-Hamas war in Gaza has carved a clear demarcation and segregation between the West and the East, as countries are establishing their positions over the raging conflict and expressing serious concerns over the bloodshed since October 7, which has so far killed thousands of people on both sides.
Meanwhile the Pakistan government and the masses at large have sided with Palestine and Hamas, terming the Israeli offensive as inhumane, incessant and lethal.
Pakistan's Interim-Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar has labelled Israel as the "aggressor’ and ‘oppressor", calling for internal attention to what he referred to as the Jewish nation's violation of international laws and committing war crimes through a blatant intent of a genocide of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank.
“For over a month, the people of Gaza have been subjected to the worst form of collective punishment. Israeli forces are committing crimes against humanity with impunity as they indiscriminately massacre defenseless civilians and deliberately deprive them of food, water and shelter and medical care.
"The use of phosphorus bombs and threats of nuclear holocaust are being made against a people under occupation who are being forcibly evicted from their land," Kakar said.
On Friday, the interim Prime Minister met Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Riyadh on the sidelines of the extraordinary summit of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), being convened to address the emergency situation in Gaza as a result of the war.
A statement by the Prime Minister's Office said: "Kakar and President Abbas express their concerns over the dire situation in Gaza, emphasizing the need for Israel to agree to a ceasefire and cease bombardments that have led innocent Palestinians to flee their homes."
Sentiments have also been boiling inside Pakistan as various organisations and religious parties have organised pro-Palestine protest rallies across the country.
Thousands of people have participated in the rallies, expressing their anger against the Israeli aggression and support for the Palestinians and their right to life, to co-exist and to self-determination.
Hamas, an organisation declared as a terror outfit by Israel, the US, European Union (EU) and other western states, is a “Resistance Force” for Pakistanis, who they say are fighting against the Israeli aggression.
Massive rallies have been staged out in Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad by religious organisations, who are calling on the Muslim world to come out and join the Palestinians against Israel.
“Israel has been working on this for decades. They want to eliminate Palestinians and occupy their land. Gaza was a caged open-air prison for decades. And today, Israel has killed over 10,000 innocent civilians, majority of who are young children. How can any Muslim see and shy away from the genocide? We stand with the brave Palestinians and demand our state to declare a state of war against Israel," said Maulana Fazl-ur-Rehman of Jamiat-Ulema Islam- Fazl (JUI-F).
It has also been seen that Hamas leaders, who are wanted on global terror listings, have addressed massive rallies in Pakistan through video link, while special recorded video messages from Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, have also been played in public rallies across the country.
JUI-F Chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman has even went a step further stating that if the Pakistani government declared “Jihad” against Israel, then majority of his party supporters were ready.
“My party and the people of Pakistan at large are ready for jihad with the people of Palestine. Until Palestine gets its freedom, Pakistani people and our workers are standing with them,” he said.
The sentiments in Pakistan are most certainly running high in support to Palestine and aggressively opposing Israel’s ongoing offensive in Gaza and the West Bank.
Since October 7, every Friday in Pakistan is marked as a special prayer day for Palestine and Gaza, while pro-Palestinian rallies are taken out almost every day in different parts of the country.