Pakistan expresses deep concern over recent developments in Middle East
ISLAMABAD (92 News) – Pakistan has viewed with deep concern the recent developments in the Middle East, which seriously threaten peace and stability in the region.
In a press release on Friday, Foreign Office Spokesperson Ayesha Farooqi said that respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity are the fundamental principles of the UN Charter, which should be adhered to. “It is also important to avoid unilateral actions and use of force.”
She said that all parties are urged to exercise maximum restraint, engage constructively to de-escalate the situation, and resolve issues through diplomatic means, in accordance with UN Charter and international law.
On Friday, Iran threatened to hit back hard after a US air strike in Baghdad killed Qassem Soleimani, commander of Iran’s elite Quds Force and architect of its growing military influence in the Middle East.
Soleimani, a general, was regarded as the second most powerful figure in Iran after Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
The overnight attack, authorized by President Donald Trump, marked a dramatic escalation in a ‘shadow war’ in the Middle East between Iran and the United States and its allies, principally Israel and Saudi Arabia.
Top Iraqi militia commander Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, an adviser to Soleimani, was also killed in the attack.
Iran has been locked in a long conflict with the United States that escalated sharply last week with an attack on the US embassy in Iraq by pro-Iranian militiamen following a US air raid on the Kataib Hezbollah militia, founded by Muhandis.
Responding to the strike, Iraq’s prime minister said Washington had violated a deal for keeping US troops in his country. Israel put its army on high alert and US allies in Europe including Britain, France and Germany voiced concerns about an escalation in tensions.
The Pentagon said the ‘US military has taken decisive defensive action to protect US personnel abroad by killing Qassem Soleimani’. Trump ordered the strike to disrupt future Iranian attack plans, it said.
