As the conflict between Israel and Hamas continued to rage on, Caretaker Foreign Minister Jalil Abbas Jilani on Sunday equated Israel’s airstrikes on Gaza and the siege of the territory to conducting genocide against the people of Palestine.

The statement comes after Israel imposed a “total siege” to stop food and fuel from reaching the enclave of 2.3 million people, many poor and dependent on aid in response to a surprise Hamas offensive last week that left 1,300 Israelis dead, according to officials.

In retaliatory air and artillery strikes, Israeli forces have flattened entire neighbourhoods, hospitals and schools in Gaza. Israeli strikes on the Gaza Strip since last week have killed at least 2,215 people, including 724 children, the Palestinian territory’s Hamas-controlled health ministry said on Saturday.

Addressing a press conference in Islamabad, the minister noted that the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation had called an emergency meeting of its executive committee in Jeddah on October 18, adding that he would be in attendance.

“Certainly, Palestine is a very, very, important issue for us. We will certainly discuss the ongoing situation. There is absolutely no doubt that Israel has committed aggression. They have conducted airstrikes on the civilian population which has resulted in the death of several innocent men, women and children,” he said, adding that Pakistan also condemned the “siege of Gaza”.

Jilani noted that the residents of Gaza did not have access to food, water or health facilities. “This is a situation that can be equated with genocide. Matter of fact it is a genocide being conducted by Israel against the poor people of Palestine.”

He said that Pakistan’s position was that Israel must respect United Nations resolutions which recognised the right of self-determination. “We also feel that this is also the result of seven decades of illegal occupation of […] Palestinian territories.”

He also said that “any attempt to equate Israel, which is an aggressor, with the Palestinian struggle, is unacceptable for Pakistan.” He said that Pakistan demanded that the Palestinian right to self-determination be respected.

He called for recognising Palestine as a separate state with pre-1967 borders and Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital. “That remains Pakistan’s consistent position with regards to this particular issue,” he said.

Responding to a question from a reporter, he said that Pakistan was in touch with UN agencies and international organisations to provide humanitarian assistance to the Palestinians.

“Our missions in Geneva and New York are also in touch with the UN agencies concerned. But unfortunately, so far there is a complete siege as far as Gaza is concerned,” he said.

He said that Pakistan was ready to provide immediate aid and was also in touch with Egyptian authorities. “We have been told only this morning that Israel is not allowing any assistance as of now. But this is something that we, along with OIC member countries and the international community, would make a very forceful case for the early provision of humanitarian assistance to the people of Palestine,” he said.

Responding to another question, Jilani said there was “absolutely no change in Pakistan’s position with regard to Israel”. He said that Pakistan’s position would continue until the people of Palestine were given the right of self-determination.

Alvi calls for immediate cessation of ruthless actions in Gaza

Separately, in a statement issued later in the day, President Arif Alvi urged UN and OIC to meet urgently for cessation of the ruthless actions in Gaza.

He said the organisations should ensure that necessary medical aid, food and other supplies are urgently sent in to prevent further devastation and the human catastrophe in Palestine.

“Human history has never witnessed such cruelty and barbarism being committed by Israel at a massive level; even water, electricity, food supply and medicine have been cut off,” the president said in a statement issued by the President House.

Alvi said Israel had crossed all limits by killing children, women and innocent people, regretting that the international community had failed to prevent Israel from the genocide of the Palestinian people.

“Pakistan supports the establishment of an independent state for the Palestinian people that is the only solution to bring lasting peace and stability in the region,” the president added.

Kakar’s upcoming China visit

During his presser today, Jilani also talked about Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar’s upcoming visit to China for the third Belt and Road Forum (BRF).

“The prime minister will attend the opening ceremony of the BRF and address the high-level forum entitled ‘Connectivity in an Open Global Economy’,” the PM office said in a post on X on Saturday.

Jilani said that Kakar would also hold bilateral meetings with the Chinese leadership, including President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang. Further, the premier would also hold meeting with the “participating global leaders” that would be attending the forum the details of which would be released once they were finalised, Jilani said.

The minister said that the premier would also be meeting top Chinese businessmen to “discuss the kind of cooperation that can be forged”.

He said that a number of agreements and MoUs (memorandums of understanding) would also be signed during the visit.

Terming it an “important visit”, the minister said that it would not only strengthen bilateral cooperation between the two countries but would also provide an opportunity to review the entire gamut of bilateral cooperation, including China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

He said that the premier would spend two days in Beijing, before undertaking a day-long visit to Xinjiang province. He called the region the “main artery” or CPEC.