Pakistan makes peace overture to India
Listen to article
In a renewed bid for regional peace, Pakistan on Tuesday extended an olive branch to India, offering to resume comprehensive talks to resolve all outstanding disputes between the two nuclear-armed neighbours, including the decades-old Kashmir issue.
Speaking at a news conference in New York, Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar, who also serves as the country's foreign minister, reiterated Pakistan's willingness for "composite dialogue," emphasizing that any future engagement must go beyond the issue of terrorism.
"Pakistan has itself been one of the biggest victims of terrorism," Dar said, adding that the offer was made in good faith and with the aim of achieving durable peace in South Asia.
The foreign minister asserted that there could not be lasting peace in the region without resolving the Jammu and Kashmir dispute. He said even US President Donald Trump had repeatedly acknowledged the importance of the issue.
Dar's comments came after his meeting with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio. During the meeting, both leaders discussed regional security and Pakistan's contributions to the global war on terror. "Secretary Rubio recognized Pakistan's sacrifices," Dar said.
On the Indus Waters Treaty, he reaffirmed Islamabad's position that the agreement is legally binding and cannot be altered unilaterally. He warned that any attempts by India to divert or block Pakistan's share of river waters would be unacceptable.
In response to a question on Israel, he made it clear that Pakistan has no plans to establish diplomatic ties with Tel Aviv. He called for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and reiterated Pakistan's support for the creation of an independent Palestinian state, with Al-Quds Al-Sharif (Jerusalem) as its capital.
Earlier in the day, the foreign minister addressed the High-Level International Conference on the Peaceful Settlement of the Question of Palestine and Implementation of the Two-State Solution.
In a strongly-worded speech, he condemned Israeli actions in Gaza and called for urgent international intervention. "For over 75 years, the Palestinian people have endured occupation, displacement and denial of their fundamental rights," Dar said. "Gaza is now a graveyard of international law."
He cited the killing of over 58,000 Palestinians — mostly women and children — as a "grave breach of international humanitarian law" and called for accountability for war crimes and crimes against humanity. "This collective punishment must stop now," he declared.
Dar outlined Pakistan's key demands that include an immediate, unconditional, and permanent ceasefire across Gaza and all occupied Palestinian territories, full and unimpeded humanitarian access, political and financial reinforcement for UNRWA and end to Israeli impunity through international accountability mechanisms and a genuine and irreversible political process toward a two-state solution.
He welcomed France's recent decision to recognize Palestine and urged other nations to follow suit.
He also supported the Organization of Islamic Cooperation's (OIC) proposal for an international protection mechanism for Palestinians and pledged to contribute technical and institutional assistance in areas like public health, education, and governance.
"The occupation must end and end now," he demanded. "The best guarantee for lasting peace is freedom, self-determination, and full UN membership for Palestine."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Express Tribune
an hour ago
- Express Tribune
Day of Exploitation
Listen to article New Delhi's extra-constitutional and illegal act of abrogating Articles 370 and 35A of the Indian constitution six years ago, which granted special status to occupied Kashmir, is now threatening regional peace and stability. The four-day war between India and Pakistan in May this year testifies that New Delhi has not been able to come to terms with the imbroglio in the occupied territory, and its tall claims of restoring normalcy are no more than a hoax. On August 5, Pakistan observed the 'Day of Exploitation' to reaffirm its solidarity with Kashmiris. The country reaffirmed its commitment to UN-backed right to self-determination and political and human rights of over 15 million Kashmiris languishing under Hindutva-driven rule. Pakistan once again made the world realise that resolution of the longstanding dispute is essential and will remain a cornerstone of its foreign policy. The political posturing on August 5, driven by the RSS's ideology of hate and segregation, has dealt a severe blow to regional peace and the rights of the Kashmiri people. Subsequent measures — such as altering demography, granting millions of domiciles to non-residents and economically marginalising the locals — are what the so-called democratic India represents today. The day must solicit the civilised world's attention towards the detention of hundreds of Kashmiris, and the 'cordon and search' operations that are a new normal in the dispute region under Delhi's rule. It is irksome to note that New Delhi does not even trust its own political edifices in the occupied valley, and that the local political forces there too are in a quandary. That the occupied Kashmir is being treated as a colony goes without saying. It stands as a shameful indictment of India's acclaimed credentials of secularism and its image as a "shining" democracy. India, rather than endeavouring to browbeat Pakistan on flimsy contexts, as it did in the case of Pahalgam, must rescind its August 5 acts and talk it out with Islamabad for a perpetual bilateral solution.
Business Recorder
an hour ago
- Business Recorder
Hezbollah chief says missiles will fall on Israel if it resumes war on Lebanon
BEIRUT: Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem threatened Israel directly for the first time in months in a televised speech on Tuesday, saying missiles would fall on it if it resumed a broad war on Lebanon. His comments came as Lebanon's cabinet met to discuss the fate of Hezbollah's arsenal, after Washington pressured Lebanese officials to commit to disarming the group and amid fears that Israel could intensify strikes if they fail to do so. Qassem said that, should Israel engage in a 'large-scale aggression' against Lebanon, Hezbollah, Lebanon's army and Lebanon's people would defend themselves. 'This defence will lead to missiles falling inside the Israeli entity, and all the security they have built over eight months will collapse within an hour,' he said. A U.S.-brokered ceasefire in November brought an end to months of fighting between Hezbollah and Israel. The war killed much of Hezbollah's leadership - including Qassem's predecessor Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah - and destroyed much of its arsenal. Hezbollah chief says slain predecessor Nasrallah to be buried on 23rd Qassem said the war had killed 5,000 Hezbollah fighters and wounded 13,000, the first official toll the group has given. But he said the organisation remained in good order, with fighters ready to make 'the harshest sacrifices' if needed. Minutes after he spoke, dozens of men on motorcycles carrying Hezbollah's yellow flags emerged from its strongholds in Beirut's southern suburbs for the second day in a row. Rejects 'external dictates' Washington and Beirut have been in talks since June on a U.S. roadmap to fully disarm Hezbollah in exchange for a halt to Israeli strikes, the withdrawal of Israeli troops still occupying five points in south Lebanon and funds to rebuild areas destroyed by Israeli bombardment during the war. But with little progress on disarmament, Washington's patience began wearing thin and it pressured Lebanon's ministers to swiftly make a public pledge so that talks could continue. Qassem pushed back against the conditions, saying Israel must implement the ceasefire in full by halting its military activities in Lebanon before any other discussion. 'Solve the problem of the (Israeli) aggression, and then we will discuss the issue of the weapons,' he said. Addressing Lebanese officials, he said: 'I hope you don't waste time on the storms stirred up by external dictates.'
Express Tribune
2 hours ago
- Express Tribune
Afghan card holders to be deported from Sept 1
Police officers, along with workers from the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA), check the identity cards of Afghan citizens during a door-to-door search and verification drive for undocumented Afghan nationals, in an Afghan Camp on the outskirts of Karachi, Pakistan, November 21, 2023. Photo: Reuters Listen to article The interior ministry has initiated a process for the voluntary repatriation of Afghan nationals holding Proof of Registration (PoR) cards, setting September 1 as the starting date for formal deportations, Radio Pakistan reported. The decision was taken during a high-level meeting on Tuesday held under the ongoing Illegal Foreigners Repatriation Plan (IFRP), citing security concerns and the increasing strain on national resources. A notification from the ministry confirmed that registered PoR card holders—whose documents expired on June 30, 2025—will officially be repatriated from next month. The home ministry had previously allowed PoR holders to remain in Pakistan until June 30 as part of an earlier extension, but since then over 1.3 million people have been returned home. Also Read: Govt invites opposition for dialogue on 26th Amendment More than 800,000 Afghans hold an Afghan Citizen Card in Pakistan, according to UN data. Another roughly 1.3 million are formally registered with the Pakistan government and hold a separate Proof of Residence card. In total, Pakistan hosted around 2.8 million Afghan refugees who crossed the border during 40 years of conflict in their homeland. Meanwhile, figures from UN agencies show roughly 1.3 million refugees remain, mostly in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. Pakistan launched the IFRP in November 2023, initially targeting undocumented immigrants and Afghan Citizen Card holders. Since then, about 1.3 million Afghans have been repatriated, but approximately 1.6 million remain in the country—many hoping for a policy change. Also Read: Dying Delta: Pakistan's Indus sinks and shrinks Afghan refugees have responded with alarm: many own assets or businesses built over decades and fear forced sales at minimal prices should extensions not be granted. Despite legal challenges, including a recent request rejected by the Islamabad High Court for a stay on repatriation of PoR holders, the government has maintained its stance. The court had affirmed the June 30 deadline as per policy. In an effort to ease the pressure, Minister of State Talal Chaudhry hinted at a forthcoming visa policy for foreign nationals, which would provide investment incentives—an opportunity Afghan residents may be eligible for should they choose to remain. International entities, including the UNHCR, IOM, and Amnesty International, have expressed serious concern over the scale and humanitarian impact of the expedited repatriation campaign. Critics warn that forced returns could violate the principle of non-refoulement, imperil vulnerable populations, and destabilise regional security.
