[Current Affairs] December 18,2020 Top Pakistan Current Affairs for Entry Test Preparation

2. Rumors about a meeting with Israeli officials

What’s going on? Israeli newspaper, the Jerusalem Post, claimed that Pakistan could be the next country to “normalize ties” with Israel. The article cited Noor Dahri, a British-Pakistani who is the executive director of a UK based think tank called, Islamic Theology of Counter Terrorism (ITCT). He is known to be pro-Israel. Dahri tweeted that he’s going to share details about “a secret, but successful meeting between a Pakistani politician and Israeli politicians in Tel Aviv.”

The details: i24 News English posted a video of Dahri talking about the alleged meeting. Dahri didn’t take anyone’s name, but claimed that Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan sent one of his advisors to meet Israeli officials in Tel Aviv. According to Dahri, the advisor was asked to convey a “special message” from PM Khan. Dahri didn’t exactly spell out PM Khan’s alleged message. However he did say Arab countries like Saudi Arabia and the UAE are putting a lot of pressure on Pakistan to normalize ties (i.e. establish diplomatic relations) with Israel.

Tell me more: Dahri claimed there’s a history of “covert ties” between both countries, even though Pakistan’s public stance on Israel is usually harsh. He alleged that former PM Nawaz Sharif sent two delegations to Israel. Dahri also brought up former PM Benazir Bhutto, claiming she met an Israeli delegation in Washington D.C, and sent a delegation to Israel as well.

The context: Recent rumors are raising eyebrows and questions, because PM Khan has repeatedly said Pakistan can’t recognize Israel unless Palestinians get their basic rights and a just settlement (i.e. the two-state solution, where the Palestinians have their own separate state). According to the foreign office, Pakistan supports a two-state solution, “…with pre-1967 borders and Al-Quds Al-Sharif as the capital of Palestine,” (i.e. Al-Quds Al-Sharif is a reference to the city of Jerusalem).

Looking ahead: As we mentioned before, Dahri didn’t take anyone’s name, but the PM’s Special Advisor on Overseas Pakistanis, Zulfi Bukhari, still said ‘it wasn’t me.’ Bukhari alleged that Indian and Israeli sponsored media outlets, along with political opposition parties, are trying to cause trouble.

The bottom line: We cannot verify Dahri’s claims about a “secret meeting” in Israel. There is also a lack of clarity on what exactly the PM’s advisor said during his alleged meeting with Israeli officials. News that Pakistan is thinking about normalizing ties with Israel is speculation at this point.