ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Friday pledged its support to Qatar for the defense of its sovereignty after this week’s Israeli airstrikes targeted Hamas leaders in Doha, raising alarm about a potential military escalation in an already volatile region.
Israel attempted to kill the political leaders of Hamas with the attack on Tuesday, in what the United States (US) described as a unilateral attack that does not advance American and Israeli interests.
The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) condemned the strikes, but did not mention Israel in a statement agreed to by all 15 members at an emergency meeting summoned at the request of Algeria, Pakistan and Somalia.
On Thursday, Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif met with Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani in Doha to stress Muslim unity as the Gulf country called for a collective regional response to Israeli airstrikes.
“The Prime Minister conveyed Pakistan’s strongest condemnation of the Israeli attack on Doha on September 9, terming it a blatant and flagrant violation of Qatar’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” Shafqat Ali Khan, a spokesperson for the Pakistani foreign office, told reporters in Islamabad.
