Pakistan to observe Palestine solidarity day on May 21

KARACHI, Pakistan

Pakistan on Tuesday condemned the ongoing Israeli airstrikes on Palestinian civilians and announced a day of solidarity with them on May 21.

Addressing a press conference in the capital Islamabad, Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry said the day would be observed on the directive of Prime Minister Imran Khan.

All provincial governments, Pakistan-administered Kashmir, and the Gilgit-Baltistan region will mark the event alongside the federal government.

"We assure our Palestinian brothers and sisters that Pakistan will continue to support them in their just struggle," Chaudhry said.

He underlined that Islamabad would send aid to help Palestine deal with the coronavirus pandemic and medical emergency caused by Israeli airstrikes in the Gaza Strip.

Condemning the Israeli airstrikes on civilians and expulsion of Palestinians from their homes in the Shaikh Jarrah neighborhood of occupied East Jerusalem, the minister said the international community must intervene to halt the "massacre."

The total number of people killed in the ongoing Israeli attacks on the besieged Gaza Strip has risen to 213, including 61 children, 36 women, and 16 elderly people, the Palestinian Health Ministry said on Tuesday. As many as 1,400 people have also been injured in the attacks.

The Israeli military has staged airstrikes since May 10, leaving behind a massive trail of destruction. Media offices and health centers are among the structures targeted.

Tensions that started in East Jerusalem during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan spread to Gaza as a result of Israeli assaults on worshippers in the flashpoint Al-Aqsa Mosque compound and Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood.