Deputy Prime Minister (DPM) and Foreign Minister (FM) Ishaq Dar has said that Pakistan is a nuclear power and will defend its sovereignty at all costs if attacked, regardless of which country is responsible.
In a special interview with Al Jazeera in Doha on the sidelines of the Arab-Islamic emergency summit, Dar described the recent Israeli strike on Qatar as a grave action against international law, the UN Charter, and the sovereignty of Muslim countries.
He warned that if the Muslim world limits itself to statements alone, countries representing 2 billion Muslims will appear to have failed in the eyes of their people.
Dar said Israel has become an uncontrollable state that is challenging the sovereignty of one Muslim country after another. “You have seen Lebanon, Syria, Iran and now Qatar attacked. This approach is unacceptable,” he said, adding that Qatar was engaged in US and Egyptian-mediated peace talks at the time of the strike and that the attack was intended to sabotage that process.
Referring to a meeting of the 57-member Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, he said this is not the time for resolutions and statements only; a clear action plan is needed outlining what measures will be taken if Israel does not stop its aggression.
Read: Arab-Islamic states condemn Israel’s Qatar strike as threat to regional ties
He said Pakistan, together with Somalia and Algeria, immediately sought a special session of the UN Security Council and also mobilized the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva.
In the interview, Ishaq Dar said military action is a last resort, and Pakistan’s priority has always been peace, dialogue and diplomacy. However, if dialogue fails and the aggression does not stop, effective practical measures will be necessary, “which could include economic sanctions, legal action, or formation of a regional security force.”
When asked about Pakistan’s nuclear capability, Ishaq Dar said that the country’s nuclear force is purely defensive, has never been used and there is no intent to use it; but if Pakistan’s sovereignty is attacked, it will defend itself at all costs, regardless of which country is involved.
Comparing Israel’s strike on Qatar to the US action against Bin Laden, Ishaq Dar called the analogy a failed attempt to divert attention, saying the world knows what that operation was. He noted that Pakistan itself has been the biggest victim and target of terrorism.
Ishaq Dar said Kashmir is an internationally acknowledged dispute with UN resolutions. He described India’s revocation of Article 370 and the integration of Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) into India as contested actions that violate international law.
He said India has no right to withdraw from the Indus Waters Treaty, and if India turns water into a weapon, that would be considered an act of war. He stressed that Pakistan regards the issue as a matter of national security and will not compromise.
Speaking about the May 7–10 clashes with India, he said Pakistan demonstrated clear defensive superiority, undermining India’s claim of a regional security net.
On relations with Afghanistan, he said ties have improved, with progress on trade, agreements and rail projects, but the presence of elements such as TTP, BLA and the Mujahid Brigade in Afghanistan is unacceptable.
He demanded that these militants either be handed over to Pakistan or expelled from Afghanistan.
Ishaq Dar said that global resolutions on Palestine and Kashmir are not being implemented; if UN decisions become merely paper, what remains of the UN’s credibility? He called for reforms in the Security Council and strong measures against countries that ignore its decisions.
In closing, the Foreign Minister urged that the most urgent step now is an unconditional ceasefire and unfettered delivery of humanitarian aid in Gaza. He said every moment is precious and the protection of every life must be the top priority.
Israel’s 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.
Islamabad on Tuesday, as Doha condemned the attack — the first of its kind on Qatari territory.
Read more: PM heads to Qatar for Emergency Arab-Islamic Summit on Palestine
Qatar, which has been a key mediator in efforts to broker a truce in Gaza, said Israeli strikes targeted the homes of several members of Hamas’s political bureau residing in the Gulf country, where the militant group’s senior leadership is based.
The strikes were carried out jointly by the military and the Shin Bet security agency, the two bodies said in a statement.
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.
