Govt deliberating troop deployment to Gaza under Trump’s peace plan: Asif

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Defense Minister Khawaja Asif revealed on Tuesday that the government is still discussing plans to send troops to Gaza to join the proposed international stabilization force under US President Donald Trump’s peace initiative.

“This thing has to be finalized [and] It is in process. “The government will take a decision after going through the process, and I don’t want to support it,” he said during an interview with Geo News.

However, the defense czar said the government would take Parliament and all institutions into confidence before deciding on it.

The deployment of an international peacekeeping force to Gaza was part of US President Donald Trump’s plan to help secure a fragile cease-fire, which began this month, ending two years of war between Israel and the Palestinian resistance group Hamas.

A day earlier, Israel said it would not accept the presence of Turkish armed forces in Gaza under a US plan that would end the war in the Palestinian territories for good.

Israel has not surrendered its right to defend itself as part of an agreement reached by Washington, Egypt and Qatar, Israeli Foreign Minister Jaedon Saar said.

Saar’s statement came after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tel Aviv would decide which foreign forces would be allowed into Gaza.

But it remains unclear whether Arab and other states would be willing to commit troops to an international force.

Although the Trump administration has refused to send US troops to the Gaza Strip, it is in talks with Indonesia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Qatar, Turkey and Azerbaijan to contribute to the multinational force.

Earlier, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting categorically rejected “fake and misleading reports” by Indian media outlets, claiming the deployment of 20,000 Pakistani troops for the Gaza Peacekeeping Force.

Pakistan has never recognized Israel and has always maintained a clear, principled stand in support of Palestinian self-determination, the ministry said.

He also clarified that neither the Foreign Office nor the army’s media wing, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), ever supported or announced any Pakistani mission in Gaza.

‘Elements in Kabul behind deadlock in Pak-Afghan talks’

Asif blamed elements in Kabul for stalling Pakistan’s talks with the Afghan Taliban government, saying the Afghan delegation was “powerless and helpless”.

Loyalists from Pakistan and Afghanistan are currently in Istanbul, Turkey, for the second round of peace talks, following weeks of border clashes.

“Their [Taliban’s] Control over Afghanistan is weak. Every time we came close to an agreement, there was some kind of interference from Kabul that resulted in the suspension of talks.

Asif said he was aware of the issue by the Afghan delegation during the first round of talks in Doha, Qatar, in which he led the Pakistani delegation.

His comments came as the Pakistani delegation and Turkish mediation stepped up efforts to reach an agreement with the Taliban delegation on the issue of cross-border terrorism.

Sources said the talks in the second round of talks – which began on October 25 – were moving towards the final round.

However, he said the Afghan side kept changing its position every time it received instructions from Kabul, leaving negotiations in jeopardy.

Speaking during the Today Show, the Defense Minister said that Pakistan participated in the talks to contribute to regional peace, and said that any collapse of the talks would be entirely on the Taliban government.

Asif said that Pakistan joined the talks with the aim of peace in the region, and said that any collapse of the talks would be solely the responsibility of the Taliban government.

Asif advised caution against believing “verbal promises” made by a group rather than uniform government policy.

“How can we believe someone who is hosting the TTP, which is responsible for the martyrdom of 4,000 of our children?” he asked.

The defense minister added that the Taliban delegation was powerless, saying that real power rested in Kabul, which had been infiltrated by India.

“There is no doubt that India has started a proxy war against Pakistan using Kabul,” he added.

He said that India wanted to avenge the humiliating defeat during the May conflict, adding that “there were elements in Afghanistan who have pledged allegiance to India”.

Asif revealed that the Taliban delegation supported the agreement with the Pakistani delegation five times after receiving instructions from Kabul.

“That [Taliban delegation] When they return, they will express their helplessness. I have every sympathy with this delegation.

He further said that those pulling strings from Kabul were being controlled from New Delhi.

Asif believed that India intended to engage Pakistan in a “low-intensity war”, and said that this plan was being implemented by Kabul.

In response to Afghan media reports that the Taliban would target Islamabad in the event of another conflict, the minister said, “If anyone looks towards Islamabad, we will gouge out their eyes”.