ISLAMABAD: In response to escalating tensions in the Middle East, 20 Muslim countries, including Pakistan, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, UAE, and Egypt, issued a joint statement on Tuesday condemning the Israeli military strikes on Iran. The statement, released by Pakistan’s Foreign Office, condemned the attacks as “a violation of international law” and a threat to Iran’s sovereignty.
The airstrikes, which began on June 13, targeted Iranian facilities, intensifying fears of a broader regional conflict. The joint communiqué, signed by foreign ministers from Algeria, Bahrain, Brunei, Chad, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Libya, Mauritania, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Türkiye, Oman, and the UAE, called for an immediate halt to Israeli hostilities and urged all parties to work toward de-escalation.
The statement emphasized the importance of respecting national sovereignty and peaceful dispute resolution, stressing the urgency of a nuclear-free Middle East. The ministers proposed the creation of a Middle East Zone free of nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction in line with international resolutions, urging all regional countries to join the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT).
The communiqué further called for a halt to attacks on nuclear facilities under International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) safeguards, as such actions breach international law and the 1949 Geneva Conventions. The ministers highlighted the need for renewed diplomatic negotiations regarding Iran’s nuclear program and warned that military solutions would not resolve the crisis.
Concluding with a call for the preservation of freedom of navigation in international waterways, the statement reflected growing frustration among Muslim countries with Israel’s actions, urging the international community to intervene before the conflict destabilizes the region further.
