‘If there were an Oscar for best theatrical performance by a country, Israel would win every year. It’s
a country based on theatre. It’s a lunatic State’ – completely insane. Norman Finkelstien
Israel came into being in 1948 through a dubious United Nations Resolution, 181, that called for the partition of Palestine into two States – one Palestine and the other Israel. Palestine was neither consulted nor was it a participant in any of the discussions leading to the cutting in half of their territories. Quaide-Azam at the time wrote to the United States registering his reservations. The text of his note is attached in full at the end of this article. However, most Muslim countries also chose not to recognise Israel because they felt that it was created artificially; i.e. giving Palestinian land to the Jews to make a home for themselves, that they later expanded and made into a separate state but at great cost to the Palestinians – the world, then had willfully and deliberately robbed Peter to pay Paul. Out of the community of 192 States, 28 nations do not recognise Israel. These include 15 members of the Arab League and 10 non-Arab members. The legitimacy of an Israeli State had been challenged even before the State was established. There had been opposition to Zionism even then and against the movement at the time to establish a Jewish State in Palestine since its emergence, even in the 19th Century Europe. Israel was founded on the principles declared in the Belfour Declaration of 1917, constructed in the United Kingdom. No such precedence, exists in history where the international community connived, conspired and planned to construct a State in the jurisdiction of someone else’s land. Thus in common solidarity with the Palestinian people, most of the Islamic countries refused to recognise Israel as well as some other non-Islamic States.
Now we watch Israeli atrocities in hindsight in this year 2025 – nothing has contained their conduct, limited or restricted their appetite to perpetuate wanton destruction to Arab property, life and limb. They have demonstrated beyond doubt that it is impossible for the Arabs to co-exist with a Zionist State. The International Court for Justice (ICJ) concluded on 19th July 2024 that Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories is unlawful. On 18th September 2024, UNGA adopted a non- binding advisory opinion; 124 countries voted in favour of the resolution, 43 abstained and 14 voted against.
The resolution called for an Israeli withdrawal from occupied Palestinian territory within one year. On 21st November 2024, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Benjamin Netanyahu, the Prime Minister of Israel and Yoav Gallant, former Israeli Minister of Defence.
Despite this universal declaration of guilt and wrong doing, the United States is working overtime, pushing for what it had conceived earlier, The Abraham Accords, which are a set of agreements announced in 2020 and signed in Washington DC. Because of this accord some Arab States have agreed to normalise relations with Israel, beginning with the UAE and Bahrain, followed by Sudan (who, in exchange, was removed from the list of States sponsoring terrorism and given $1.2 billion to clear national debt) and Morocco (In exchange for recognition of Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara). For now, the Trump regime is insisting that the Accords be expanded to include Syria, Lebanon and Saudi Arabia. However, as per recent rumours, Pakistan too has been added to the dubious list of willing Islamic States that are amiable to showing the needed flexibility towards the matter. The US having brow-beaten almost all Islamic States into accepting Israelis is now confronted by Iran alone that stands proudly as the only Islamic State that has not changed its position, so far, and continues to demonstrate the high value it attaches to self-respect, dignity and its sovereign aspirations.
It has been established by no less than Israel itself that it is a rogue State. Its blatant and open demonstration in the face of the world in general, and the Islamic States in particular, of holding the international community, their laws, conventions or any other moral equation in utter contempt and scorn, has no equal. It is the only State in possession of nuclear weapons in violation of international law since it is neither a signatory of the IAEA nor does it allow its facilities to be inspected. It has attacked all its neighbours and killed thousands of people around it. Currently, Israel is committed to open genocide in what it likes to call a ‘war’ against unarmed civilians, women and children. It is the only case in modern warfare where the guilty party openly executes its war crimes and films them itself to display to a benign world that looks on in indifference. It recently attacked Iran which was in violation of UN Article 2(4), and Resolution 3314 as well as Charter VII of the UN Charter. Furthermore, Israel attacked Iranian nuclear facilities in violation of international law and that too those facilities which were registered by IAEA and were supposed to be protected by an international agreement. But then, who cares – what laws, what agreements and which treaties – nothing matters where Israel is concerned; a country that remains above the law and thrives in a skewed Global Order where nations like ours will never be entitled to enter, being the lesser people we are and that we so pliantly accept. The United States recently vetoed the halting of the genocide in Gaza, they did it without any qualms and without any shame. Israeli influence in the US power corridors have the tail wagging the dog anyway it wants. America remains at the beck and call of their own proxy in the Middle East, eager to do what Israel wants them to do next. As long as US economic and military power stands behind Israel, they will sit in the American lap and pull faces at the rest of the world, undeterred, unmoved and with total liberty to do their damnedest to whoever they choose.
We, the people of Pakistan are now all of a sudden subjected to a tongue in cheek discussion; to recognise Israel or not to. For Pakistan to agree to recognising Israel has come as a kind of shock amongst the people who so far have been kept in the dark but who would like to know what brought about such a change of heart – the rational, the compulsion or why? Recognise Israel but as what – friend or foe? Recognise Israel for being a rogue State that it has visibly demonstrated it is? Or should we wait for Israel to grow up and become a responsible member of the international community, governed by international laws as all other nations are? What will it be – what are we recognising?
Israeli cooperation with India exists in almost every field and especially in matters of defence, which is no secret. India is recognised and identified as a principle and only enemy State that Pakistan co-exists with. Pakistan’s nuclear capability has always been viewed by Israel as a threat to their existence and that they needed to do something to deal with it i.e. defang Pakistan justifying it as an act of self- defence. Israel has a military presence and expertise in India for this very purpose and there is a history of Israeli attempts in trying to destroy Pakistan’s nuclear facilities with India eagerly aiding and abetting. Recently, Israel infiltrated the Iranian security apparatus in a big way and this was demonstrated in the recent Iran-Israel conflict where multiple assassinations of the Iranian military leadership and nuclear experts occurred. It was the Indians that had collaborated with Israelis in the Chahbahar Port systems structure, not only facilitating their infiltration into Iran but giving them access to closely monitor, supervise and execute terrorism in Pakistani Balochistan as well. The purpose was to disrupt the CPEC project and thereby set back the Chinese plans for the BRI. This was totally in line with the US strategic objective of containing China and as such they were actively involved in aiding and abetting the terrorist activities that were being carried out in Balochistan. Israeli influence in the US political structure is so phenomenal that the US President stands totally compromised and serves Israel’s interests even more than US interests. When all these facts are put together, then does Pakistan suddenly feel intimated and does Pakistan now need to compromise on its principle positon because of how it reads the situation? That Israel must be weaned away from being an enemy and instead be cultivated as a friend despite the atrocities it has committed and would we really be in need of such a friendship? Is this how Pakistan’s national interests are best served – to place ourselves in our comfort zone by being indifferent to the inhuman suffering that we witness every day against helpless women and children? Or, instead, is the government looking for compensations just as Sudan and Morocco were blessed with, and that after having been paid in full for what some may identify as treachery, will we turn our economy around and boost our security – is that the thought? Well there are two hard probabilities, over and above the Government’s decision to ignore the sentiment of the people of Pakistan as well as to distance themselves from the genocide of Muslims at the hands of Zionists. The first is, this immoral compromise will not guarantee an all-time friendship or a stable relationship – in fact, Israel is never likely to be friendly with Pakistan for a host of reasons. Instead of looking like a pragmatic nation moving forward, as some may have imagined, we shall be seen more as a nation of cowards, weak, unreliable and pliably eager to please the strong at the cost of the weak. Being an Islamic State that never fails to bleat about being born in the name of Islam, Pakistan will fail to live up to the Islamic values of supporting the downtrodden, yet when also seen in the light of being the only Islamic nuclear power, this behaviour demonstrates a huge moral contradiction – if Pakistan does recognise Israel now. The second issue is, that in the immediate future, the US will suffer the retreat of a waning empire and its moment of glory has almost come to an end. This century belongs to China and Russia and just when they are coming of age, we go and grab the skirts of a diminishing entity, which makes no sense or political propriety. The movers and shakers will probably say, it is all in the national interest – it always is but it is usually difficult to identify those interests!
Thus, what is national interest – if it does not include the nation itself, their aspirations, their dignity, reputation and their universally recognised position? Has the government studied the sentiment amongst the people or are the people irrelevant in making such a decision? What has really changed since 1948 when Israel was established and the father of our nation, the Quaid found the establishment of an Israeli State an abomination and a blot on the map of the world – if anything, matters are far worse than better? So if the situation has gotten even poorer, if the people are not in agreement and if Israel has done its worst in harming Pakistan, then what motivates the powers-that- be, holding the reins of government, to recognise Israel? Is the country being coerced, threatened or is this decision motivated merely by a sense of collective self-preservation of an unwanted regime; or worse still, are we, the people being sold out like cattle? Having said as much, it would be realistic to point out that, despite all the horrible things Israel is doing, not recognising Israel for all times to come is not a sustainable position and somewhere at some time, when matters are more conducive, Pakistan may find it within itself to recognise Israel. However, when we say matters are ‘conducive’, we must examine those matters. First and foremost, will the Palestinians be given an independent status and a two State solution adhered to with a sustainable presence of an autonomous Palestine. If this be the case, then the bone of contention has largely been removed and we may recognise Israel as well as Palestine as two separate States. Second, the mover behind this rapprochement is the United States and we must ask them to commit to a position on Kashmir as well and that they must play a meaningful role in implementing the UN Resolution for holding a plebiscite in Kashmir. Third, with a view to establishing some regional relevance, Pakistan could insist that if Israel with its history of violence, terrorism, genocide and deceit, is still qualified to be recognised as a responsible state amongst the comity of nations, then Afghanistan too is kosher for such a recognition. After all Afghanistan has not done half the evil that Israel has committed. If Pakistan undertakes a role in getting Afghanistan recognised internationally, then it must lead to a guaranteed understanding of normalising relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan – a mechanism mutually agreed to must be constructed and implemented to facilitate such an endeavour. As far as any future recognition of Israel, Pakistan must exact, what is really in its national interest, without compromising on the humanitarian matter of supporting Palestine. The first two conditions are ones that can never be compromised upon but it would be preferable to secure all three demands as listed. Without these conditions being met Pakistan must never recognise Israel – there is nothing in it for Pakistan without them. It is also time to call a conference of the Muslim States and to agree to either restructure the OIC or disband it and bring in a new organisation. The OIC is now a toothless entity which makes all of the Islamic States it represents, guilty by association of being equally impotent and useless. There is a need for a NATO style military system, a separate banking system, a political structure on the lines of the EU and a defined code of conduct, laws, regulations and procedures that ensure all member nations are in compliance with the principles stipulated. It is difficult to bring everyone on one platform, sharing goals, defining mutually benefitting set of interests that identify with the commonality of all Muslim States. Yet, without doing so, 2 billion Muslims of this world will always be at the mercy of 9 million Israelis or 15 million Jews of this world, to kick around every Muslim as they are doing now and visibly demonstrated by every Islamic Nation, tripping over the other in a bid to be the first to recognise a rogue nation that freely kills, maims and rapes many of their very own Muslim Communities.
‘It often seems as though the silent, humble servant is secretly wiser and more discerning
than the
haughty master; yet through dutiful (and sometimes insecure) surrender he continues to
serve and carry out petty orders in loyal acquiescence’,
Criss Jami.
