- Pakistan FM attends OIC foreign ministers’ conclave, condemns continuing “Israeli atrocities against innocent Palestinians”
- PM Khan leaves for Jeddah to attend OIC’s 14th summit in Makkah
ISLAMABAD: Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi raised the issue of “human rights violations” in Indian-administered Kashmir on Wednesday, the Pakistani foreign office said in a statement on Thursday, as he led a Pakistani delegation at a conclave of foreign ministers of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation body in Jeddah.
Muslim-majority Kashmir is divided between nuclear-armed India and Pakistan, who both claim the mountainous region in full and have fought two of their three wars over it since their separation in 1947. A UN report released last year highlighted serious violations in Indian-administered Kashmir from July 2016 to April 2018, with activists estimating that up to 145 civilians were killed by security forces and up to 20 civilians killed by armed groups in the same period.
On Wednesday, Qureshi attended the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers meeting which deliberated and adopted outcome documents for the OIC’s Makkah Summit, to be held on May 31. At the meeting, Pakistan was also elected Vice Chair of the Bureau of OIC Summit from Asia.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Imran Khan left for Ƶ on Thursday where he will represent Pakistan at the 14th edition of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation’s summit in Makkah.
Speaking during Wednesday’s meeting, Qureshi drew the participants’ attention toward “human rights violations” in Indian-held Kashmir and sought the support of the OIC member states for a “Commission of Inquiry under the UN” to investigate abuses in the part of Kashmir administered by India. Ƶ remains an active member of the OIC Contact Group on Jammu and Kashmir.
The Foreign Minister also made a detailed reference to the situation in Palestine, strongly condemning continuing “Israeli atrocities against innocent Palestinians.”
“While reaffirming full solidarity with the Palestinian people, Pakistan renews its call for establishment of a viable, independent and contiguous state of Palestine, on the basis of internationally agreed parameters, pre 1967 borders, and with Al Quds Al-Sharif as its capital,” the foreign office statement added, quoting the foreign minister.
Qureshi also held a bilateral meeting with Saudi Foreign Minister Ibrahim Al Assaf on the sidelines of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers, and described the Pakistan-Saudi relationship as both historic and strategic and built on strong foundations.
“Foreign Minister Qureshi underscored the importance Pakistan attaches to this traditionally close and cordial relationship — marked by mutual trust, understanding and support for each other,” the Pakistani foreign office statement said.
Recalling the successful visit of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman to Pakistan in February this year, the Foreign Minister called it as a high point in bilateral relations between the two countries, that would provide further strategic direction to the relationship.
The two Foreign Ministers discussed a range of subjects, including bilateral political exchanges, intensified economic and financial interaction, and the release of Pakistani prisoners. “They also exchanged views on recent developments in the region,” the foreign office statement said.