Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Saturday said that Palestinian group Hamas’s response to US President Donald Trump’s Gaza peace plan “creates a window for a ceasefire and ensuring peace that we must not allow to close again”.
Late Friday night, Trump told Israel to immediately stop bombing Gaza after Hamas agreed to release hostages and accept some other terms in a US plan to end the war, but vexing issues like disarmament appeared unresolved.
In a post on X (formerly Twitter), the premier said: “Alhamdolillah, we are closer to a ceasefire than we have been since this genocide was launched on the Palestinian people. Pakistan has always stood by the Palestinian people and shall always do so.”
He also expressed gratitude to US President Trump, as well as the leaderships of Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Turkiye, Jordan, Egypt and Indonesia, for their efforts during meetings on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).
The eight countries, including Pakistan, and the US had met on the sidelines of the UNGA to discuss the conflict in Gaza.
Later in the day, Dar held a telephone conversation with Saudi counterpart, Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, wherein they discussed regional developments, particularly the situation in Gaza.
According to a statement issued by the Foreign Office (FO), they reviewed ongoing diplomatic efforts, including engagements and consultations among the eight Arab-Islamic countries and the United States in New York, aimed at “achieving an immediate and durable ceasefire, ensuring unhindered humanitarian assistance, and to secure lasting peace in Gaza”.
It added that Dar appreciated the Saudi foreign minister’s continued engagement and constructive role in these efforts.
“They also discussed recent developments, including Hamas’s response to the proposal of President Donald Trump. Both ministers reaffirmed their firm commitment to the Palestinian cause and agreed to remain closely engaged with Arab and Islamic partners, as well as the international community, to advance a just, comprehensive, and lasting peace based on the two-state solution,” it concluded.
Separately, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has said that Pakistan has always stood by the Palestinians in their struggle for rights and will continue to support them in the future as well.
The prime minister expressed these views during a telephone conversation with President of JUI-F Maulana Fazlur Rehman on Saturday.