Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has received an invitation from US President Donald Trump to join the proposed ‘Board of Peace’ for Gaza, Pakistan’s Foreign Office said on Sunday.
Earlier today, a spokesperson for Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement that Sharif had been invited to become part of the international body that would oversee the temporary governance of Gaza under a fragile ‘ceasefire’ that has been in place since October.
No US confirmation on Sharif’s ‘invitation’
Apart from the statement issued by Pakistan, no official confirmation has been issued by the White House or any other relevant US authority to confirm Pakistan’s claim at the time of publishing this report.
Pakistan’s claim has also come under scrutiny of social media users as Pakistan does not have diplomatic relations with Israel.
Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas had previously signed off on Trump’s plan to establish a ‘Board of Peace’ for Gaza which had then resulted in the establishment of a temporary ceasefire at the time. In a social media post, Trump had announced that the board had been constituted and said its members would be revealed shortly, describing it as “the greatest and most prestigious board ever assembled”.
Recent developments in Gaza
The US officially launched Phase Two of the peace plan for Gaza on January 14 shifting focus from a simple ceasefire to demilitarization and reconstruction. Following the initiation of Phase 2 US is set to proceed with establishing the ‘Board of Peace’ for Gaza, which is expected to include figures like Tony Blair, Jared Kushner, Ajay Banga and Marco Rubio.
As per a plan unveiled by the White House for Gaza in October last year, Trump is expected to chair the supervisory Board of Peace. While the US moves ahead with initiation of Phase 2 of the plan, reports by platforms like Al Jazeera claim that Trump’s forces actually failed to deliver on many of the checkpoints of their 20-point plan.
According to an Al Jazeera report, Israel has continued to commit atrocities in Gaza even after Hamas returned all the live Israeli captives. As per the report, Israel has killed at least 45 individuals in post ceasefire military operations following the return of all live Israeli hostages.