(Karachi) The State of Palestine thanked Prime Minister Imran Khan for his "strong response" on Israel. It expressed gratitude to the government for extending support to the Palestinian cause.

A statement issued by the Palestine Embassy in Islamabad lauded the government's move to condemn Israeli aggression towards Palestine.

"Palestinians consider Pakistan as our second homeland and Pakistanis as our dearest brothers, who always supported Palestine on every forum of the world," it said.

Earlier, the prime minister categorically denied that Pakistan would recognise Israel, a few days after the UAE established formal relations with Tel Aviv. He stated that Islamabad won’t do so until Palestinians are not given their right to a “just settlement”.

“Whichever country wants to do it [recognise Israel], our stance is very clear. Our stance was cleared by Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah in 1947-48,” said PM Imran. “Which was that we will never recognise Israel till the Palestinians do not get their rights.”

He said that Pakistan will not establish diplomatic relations with Israel till the Palestinians do not get a separate state of their own, which the people of Palestine accept, based on the Two-Nation Theory.

The premier said that if Pakistan agreed to recognising Israel and gave up its principled stance then it will have to stop raising the issue of Kashmir as the situation in the disputed area was the same.