- Jamaat Emir Hafiz Naeem urges nation to show solidarity with Gaza as JI will hold countrywide demonstrations on Oct 7 at 11am
- Warns against any shift in Pakistan’s Palestine policy defined by Quaid-i-Azam, urges govt to recognize Hamas as legitimate leadership of Gaza Strip
- Says Israel ‘failed militarily’ in Gaza and continues to seek engagement with Hamas, calls for new UN after accusing existing body of serving US-Israeli interests
KARACHI: Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) chief Hafiz Naeemur Rehman on Sunday urged the nation to take to the streets on October 7 in a powerful show of solidarity with the people of Palestine, warning that any deviation from Pakistan’s historic policy on the issue — defined by Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah — would not be tolerated under any circumstances.
Addressing a massive “Gaza Solidarity March” organized by the JI on Karachi’s Sharea Faisal, the party chief said Pakistan must reaffirm its unwavering support for the Palestinian cause and reject any foreign pressure to normalize relations with Israel. Participants of the march carried banners and placards, chanting slogans against Israel and its supporters over what Rehman described as an “ongoing genocide” in Gaza. People from all walks of life joined the march and formed a symbolic human chain in solidarity with their Palestinian brethren.
Karachi’s massive gathering sends a loud message ,the Ummah stands alive!
Karachi Stands With Gaza. 🇵🇸 🇵🇰 #GazaMarchKarachi pic.twitter.com/w8J6BhrRdN
— Jamaat e Islami Pakistan (@JIPOfficial) October 5, 2025
“The Pakistani nation will not allow any shift in Pakistan’s stance on Palestine,” the JI chief declared. “On March 23, 1940, two resolutions were passed — one for Pakistan and another for Palestine. There is only one state: Palestine; and only one leadership in Gaza: Hamas.”
Rehman called on the government to officially recognize Hamas as the legitimate leadership of Gaza, claiming that the movement represented the will of the Palestinian people. He also warned the rulers against joining the Abraham Accords, which normalized ties between Israel and several Arab states, and urged Pakistan to remain firm on its founding principles.
From the streets of Karachi, a sea of resistance roars for Gaza.
This is the voice of Pakistan!
Unshaken, United and Unbreakable!#GazaMarchKarachi pic.twitter.com/ZLMkcglB1T— Jamaat e Islami Pakistan (@JIPOfficial) October 5, 2025
“Israel has failed militarily in Gaza. It could not rescue its captured soldiers and continues to seek engagement with Hamas for their release,” he said. “Hamas is a resistance movement born from the will of the people, but the ruling class fears such movements because they challenge American and Israeli influence.”
The JI emir maintained that Hamas was a legal political movement whose resistance fell within the framework of the UN Charter, and demanded the government “abandon hypocrisy and double standards” by opening Hamas offices in Pakistan. “The massacre in Palestine is not the result of Hamas’s actions but of cowardly Muslim rulers who failed to defend the oppressed,” he added.
He further called for the creation of a new United Nations, saying the existing body had become “a total failure and an agent of the US and Israel.” “The UN has never solved a single issue concerning Muslims,” he lamented.
Declaring October 7 as a “symbol of struggle and resistance,” Hafiz Naeem announced that rallies and public demonstrations would be held across Pakistan at 11 a.m. in solidarity with Gaza. “People across the world will come out to express unity with the resistance forces and the oppressed people of Palestine,” he said.
The JI leader also condemned the Israeli blockade of humanitarian aid and the interception of the Global Sumud Flotilla on October 1, in which activists — including former JI senator Mushtaq Ahmad Khan, who led a Pakistani delegation — were arrested by Israeli forces while attempting to deliver aid to Gaza.
Rehman said these actions exposed Israel’s disregard for international law and humanity, calling on the international community to act against “war crimes” in the besieged enclave.
The Israeli onslaught on Gaza began in October 2023 following a Hamas attack inside Israel. Since then, more than 67,000 Palestinians have been killed, thousands injured, and millions displaced. Last month, UN investigators accused Israel of committing genocide, citing statements by Israeli leaders that incited the destruction of the Palestinian population.
Earlier, reports said former US president Donald Trump had worked with eight Muslim countries, including Pakistan, to develop a peace plan accepted by both Israel and Hamas. However, Rehman noted that despite such efforts, Israeli aggression had continued unabated, and the international community’s silence had emboldened Tel Aviv’s actions in Gaza.
