‘Pakistan’s voice of conscience at the UN’

This is apropos two back-to-back letters to the Editor carried by the newspaper on Thursday and yesterday. It was more than a diplomatic win of Pakistan at the forum of the global body, so to speak; it was a narrative triumph, a moment where Pakistan’s honor was defended, its sacrifices acknowledged, and Israel’s distortion dismantled.

For Pakistan, it was a reminder of the power of words when spoken with conviction, and for the Muslim world, it was proof that a principled voice could still rise above the noise of power politics.

This intervention was not an isolated act but part of a larger continuum of Ambassador Iftikhar’s work. Again and again at the United Nations, he has projected the suffering of Gaza and the West Bank with unflinching clarity. In June this year, he declared before the General Assembly that “the situation in Gaza is a stain on our collective conscience.

Over fifty-five thousand lives have been lost, including eighteen thousand children and twenty-eight thousand women. Infrastructure has been razed—homes, hospitals, schools, cultural heritage, places of worship. Famine looms. Humanitarian workers and UN personnel are being attacked with impunity.

This is not just a humanitarian catastrophe; it is a collapse of humanity.” These were not the words of a man speaking only for Pakistan. They were the words of a diplomat mobilizing the conscience of the world, urging not only the Muslim community but all of civilization to act, to recognise that without justice there can be no peace.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2025