UNITED NATIONS, Oct 16 (DNA):Expressing deep concern over the deteriorating situation in Gaza, Pakistan has called for a definitive end to the Israeli occupation, stressing that global efforts must converge on an irreversible timeline to establish an independent, viable Palestinian state based on pre-1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital.
“So long as the occupation continues and the Palestinian people’s legitimate yearning for self-determination goes unfulfilled, lasting peace in the Middle East will remain out of reach,” the Acting Permanent Representative of Pakistan to the United Nations, Ambassador Usman Jadoon, told the UN Security Council which met to discuss the situation in the Middle East,
“We stand firmly and unwaveringly with the Palestinian people, he declared.
Noting that during General Assembly High-Level Week, considerable attention was devoted to the Palestinian question, the Pakistani envoy said that across the various meetings and statements, a clear convergence emerged: the two-State solution remains the internationally agreed framework and the indispensable foundation for just and lasting peace.
“This international commitment to the two-State solution must be accompanied by concrete measures to preserve the territorial integrity and viability of the State of Palestine.”
Resolution 2803, the Comprehensive Plan to End the Gaza Conflict and the New York Declaration provide mutually reinforcing frameworks for advancing this objective, he said.
“Yet,” Ambassador Jadoon said, “this consensus is being undermined by Israel’s deliberate attempts to create irreversible facts on the ground,” pointing out that In the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, settlement expansion, particularly the E1 project, threatens to sever Palestinian territorial contiguity.
“Settler violence, demolitions, land seizures and forced displacement are entrenching annexation and dismantling the foundations of peace.
All settlement activities must cease in accordance with resolution 2334; settler violence must be halted; and accountability ensured. We strongly condemn the provocative and illegal incursions into Al-Aqsa Mosque/Al-Haram Al-Sharif and demand respect for the historical and legal status quo of the holy sites,” Ambassador Jadoon added.
In Gaza, he said, continued violations of the ceasefire, wanton killing of the Palestinian population and restrictions on humanitarian access continue, with the approaching winter threatens to deepen the crisis.
The ceasefire, he added, must be fully upheld, humanitarian assistance delivered unhindered and at scale, and recovery and reconstruction advanced without delay.
UNRWA’s indispensable work must be supported. We reject forced displacement and any attempt to fragment Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, which constitute a single territorial unit, the Pakistani envoy said. “Withheld Palestinian revenues must be released to enable the Palestinian Authority to fulfill its responsibilities.”
Pakistan, he said, strongly condemns the continued Houthi attacks against Saudi Arabia, including its civilian and economic infrastructure.
“These attacks must cease immediately.We reiterate our unwavering support for the security, sovereignty and territorial integrity of the brotherly Kingdom, and reaffirm its right to self-defense under international law against any external attacks.”
Pakistan, the ambassador said, supports the UN Special Envoy’s efforts towards the resumption of dialogue for a comprehensive and lasting peace in Yemen .
At the outset, Ramiz Alakbarov, Acting Un Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, noted last week marked three years since the horrific terror attacks of 7 October 2023 and the subsequent start of the devastating war in Gaza.
Countless lives have been lost or irrevocably changed, homes destroyed and communities shattered, he said.
“As we mark this grim milestone, Palestinians and Israelis deserve more than short-term fixes. They deserve a credible path to peace and finally, an end to this conflict. But they cannot do it alone”, Alakbarov said.
And one year since the ceasefire was declared in Gaza, the situation remains extremely fragile. Israeli military operations have continued causing some 1,500 Palestinian fatalities, including over 320 children and 140 women according to the Ministry of Health in Gaza.
“During my visit to Gaza on Sunday, I witnessed that, for Palestinians living along the Yellow Line, the ceasefire exists in name only”, he said.
As winter approaches, time is running out, Alakbarov said. An estimated 950,000 people are living in areas with medium or high risk of flooding. More than 4,000 buildings, in which people have sought shelter, are at risk of collapse.
“I spoke to a man in tears as he watched his family’s home being demolished — the home he had spent his entire life working to build”, he said.
He welcomed continued efforts to break the deadlock in implementing Security Council resolution 2803 (2025).
The Comprehensive Plan to End the Gaza Conflict must be fully implemented, Alakbarov said. This includes the disarmament of Hamas and other armed groups, the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Strip, and the deployment of the International Stabilization Force.
The National Committee for the Administration of Gaza must be enabled to assume its transitional governance responsibilities, he said.
‘The choice before us is clear,” Alakbarov said. “The ceasefire in Gaza must become the foundation for genuine recovery and a durable political settlement. The unlawful occupation must end across the Occupied Palestinian Territory ,” paving the way for two States, living side by side, with Jerusalem as their capital.
