‘Pak may look to Iran for support on Kashmir issue’

The Pakistani media has kept a close watch on PM Narendra Modi’s trip to Israel, with analysts debating what the visit means for Islamabad.

News channels have hosted talk shows in which the visit has beendiscussedextensivelywhile many newspapers have carried political commentary on it.

English language daily Dawn, in an editorial on Thursday, commented: “Amidst the tumult in global affairs, the Indo-Israeli relationship has emerged as a steady bilateral alliance, surprising to some, while others have been watching the ties between Tel Aviv and New Delhi grow over the decades.”

The paper said Modi’s visit seems to have cemented the alliance between the two nations as the warm embrace between Modi and his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu on the tarmac of the Ben Gurion International Airport on Tuesday showed.

Dawn noted that Indians have come a long way from their past policy regarding Israel and Palestine.

India established relations with Israel as late as 1992 while former Palestine Liberation Organisation chief Yasser Arafat enjoyed a great rapport with Indira Gandhi, calling her “his sister”.

The editorial said those days of mutual support are “clearly” gone and “Modi has no love lost for the Palestinians” as a meeting with Palestinian leaders was reportedly not on the cards.

Dawn’s commentary tried to draw parallels between Israel’s “atrocious behaviour” towards Palestinians, India’s towards Kashmiris.

“Perhaps the Indo-Israeli embrace has provided an opportunity for Pakistan to highlight the Kashmir issue with Iran and others, in order to build world opinion against the atrocities unleashed upon both the Kashmiris and Palestinians,” Dawn said.

A similar theme was followed by other news organisations in the country. In his TV programme, political commentator Farrukh Pitafi stated that Islamabad was curious as to whether Israel would also help India “crush” the uprising in Kashmir.