Al-Aqsa courtyards storming anniversary: Demos across Karachi condemn US and Israel

KARACHI: A large number of demonstrations were held across Karachi on Tuesday on the call of Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan Ameer Engr Hafiz Naeem ur Rehman to mark two years since the launch of Operation Al-Aqsa Storm and to join the global day of protest against Israel.

Protests took place in all districts of the city — on main roads, at schools, colleges, commercial centers, public spaces, and outside the City Court — where participants condemned Israeli aggression and US support for it.

Lawyers, students, teachers, traders, religious scholars, workers, and members of civil society formed human chains and carried banners and placards expressing solidarity with the people of Gaza and Hamas.

Speaking at a lawyers’ protest outside the City Court, Jamaat-e-Islami Karachi Deputy Chief and Advocate Saifuddin said Israel, despite its military power, had failed to defeat the Palestinians. He declared that Israel was an illegitimate state and would never be accepted under any circumstances.

He said the movement led by Hamas would continue until the liberation of Al-Aqsa Mosque, freedom of Palestine, and the end of Israel. He added that the blood of Palestinians would not go in vain and that all supporters of Israel, including the United States, would ultimately fail.

Saifuddin said the nationwide protests sent a clear message that the Pakistani people stood firmly with the fighters of Hamas and the residents of Gaza. He rejected the “two-state solution,” insisting instead on a single, independent Palestinian state led by Hamas.

He recalled that Pakistan’s founder, Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah, had declared Israel an illegitimate state — a stance Pakistan continues to uphold — and warned that any deviation from it would be an act of treason.

He also mentioned that 22-year-old climate activist Greta Thunberg had organized a flotilla carrying aid for Gaza, which was stopped by Israel, exposing its cruelty and inhumanity.

Other speakers at the City Court protest included Karachi Bar President Aamir Nawaz Warraich, General Secretary Ghulam Rehman Korai, Islamic Lawyers Movement’s Qaiser Jameel Malik, Syed Shua-un-Nabi Advocate, Usman Farooq Advocate, Sindh Bar Council members Haider Imam Rizvi and Farukhanda Jabeen, Rubina Jatoi Advocate, and Talat Yasmin Advocate. A large number of female lawyers also joined the demonstration.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2025