PM Shehbaz, Qatar Emir back regional unity
Shehbaz urges immediate end to Israeli aggression in Middle East
DOHA: Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif met the Emir of Qatar, His Highness Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, on the sidelines of the Emergency Arab–Islamic Summit in Doha, convened following Israel’s recent strike on Qatar.
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Muhammad Ishaq Dar and Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir were also present.
The PM strongly condemned the September 9 Israeli attack on a residential area in Doha, which killed and injured civilians. He described it as a blatant violation of Qatar’s sovereignty, territorial integrity and international law, and reaffirmed Pakistan’s full support and solidarity with Qatar, highlighting the historic and enduring fraternal ties between the two nations.
PM Shehbaz stressed that Israeli aggression in the Middle East must end immediately, underlining the need for unity within the Ummah and commending Qatar for convening the summit. He also recalled Pakistan’s request for an emergency United Nations Security Council session at Qatar’s behest.
The Emir thanked the Prime Minister for attending the summit and for his visit to Doha on September 12 to express solidarity.
Both leaders agreed to remain in close contact amid the evolving regional situation.
Arab-Islamic Summit: Leaders of Arab and Islamic states will warn that Israel’s attack on Qatar and other hostile acts threaten coexistence and regional efforts to normalise ties, according to a draft resolution set to be presented at an Arab-Islamic summit on Monday.
The summit, convened in Doha to show support for Qatar following the Israeli strike targeting leaders of the Palestinian militant group Hamas based in the Gulf state, opened on Sunday with a meeting of foreign ministers to review the draft resolution.
The joint statement from the summit urged “all States to take all possible legal and effective measures to prevent Israel from continuing its actions against the Palestinian people”, including “reviewing diplomatic and economic relations with it, and initiating legal proceedings against it”.
On the sidelines of the summit, Prime Minister Shehbaz also held separate meetings with the leaders of Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Jordan, with Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar and Chief of Army Staff General Syed Asim Munir accompanying him.
Attack on Qatar: Hamas said six people were killed in an Israeli strike on the group’s compound in Doha on Tuesday, including its top negotiator’s son and a Qatari security officer.
The September 9 attack, which Hamas says killed five of its members but spared its leadership, has pushed US-allied Gulf states to close ranks, further straining ties between Israel and the Arab world.
Qatar condemned the attack, saying it had targeted residential buildings housing Hamas political bureau members. “The State of Qatar strongly condemns the cowardly Israeli attack that targeted residential buildings housing several members of the political bureau of Hamas in the Qatari capital, Doha,” foreign ministry spokesman Majed al-Ansari said in a post on X. Monitoring Desk
