Pakistan has extended all-out support to Iran for convening an extraordinary meeting of foreign ministers of Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to deliberate upon the proposed displacement of Gaza population, reported 24NewsHD TV channel on Sunday.
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Muhammad Ishaq Dar received a telephone call from Foreign Minister of Iran Seyyed Abbas Araghchi late Saturday night, during which the two ministers exchanged views on the situation in Middle East with a particular focus on the continuing plight of Palestinians in Gaza.
Commenting on the proposal to displace the people of Gaza, the deputy prime minister termed it deeply troubling and unjust, emphasizing that the Palestinian land belongs to the Palestinian people and the only viable and just option is the two-state solution, in accordance with the UN Security Council resolutions.
Pakistan shall continue to support the establishment of a sovereign, independent, and contiguous Palestinian state based on pre-1967 borders, with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital, Dar added.
Dar also conveyed Pakistan’s support for convening of an extraordinary OIC meeting of Foreign Ministers to deliberate upon this issue.
The two ministers agreed to maintain close contact on these developments in the days ahead.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi also in a phone conversation with his Egyptian counterpart Badr Abdelatty late Saturday called for the immediate emergency meeting of OIC over Gaza.
During the phone call, the two top Iranian and Egyptian diplomats discussed bilateral ties, and recent developments in the region especially the situation in Palestine and Gaza.
Araghchi pointed to the position of Egypt in supporting the legitimate and inalienable rights of the Palestinian people and described the illegal US plan to forcibly displace the Palestinian people from the Gaza Strip as a part of a conspiracy to annihilate Palestine in a colonial manner and as a serious threat to the stability and security of the region.
The illegal plan of the US President Donald Trump regarding Gaza has received harsh opposition from various countries in the world, and it is essential that a firm stance should be adopted by the Islamic countries to confront this conspiracy levelled against the fate of the Palestinian people, Iranian foreign minister emphasized.
Iran’s top diplomat called for an immediate emergency meeting of the OIC’s ministers to discuss and make decisions on this issue.
Egyptian foreign minister, for his part, expounded his country's positions and diplomatic efforts on supporting the legitimate rights of Palestinian people, ensuring the implementation of the ceasefire agreement to alleviate the suffering of the Palestinian people and rebuilding Gaza, and considered the attempt to the forcible exodus of Gazans to leave their homeland “unacceptable”.
Welcoming Iran’s proposal to hold an emergency meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, Badr Abdelatty emphasized the need for extensive consultations among the Islamic countries in this regard.
Earlier, the Iranian Foreign Ministry unequivocally condemned a so-called “plan” by the US to force Palestinians from the Gaza Strip, calling it an extension of the Israeli regime’s broader scheme to erase the Palestinian identity.
“The plan to cleanse Gaza and forcibly displace the Palestinian people [from there] is an extension of Israel's calculated agenda to wipe out the Palestinian nation,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said on Wednesday.
Reporter Anwer Abbas/Mehr News Agency