Islamabad: Anwaarul Haq Kakar, the acting prime minister of Pakistan, declared on Thursday that the nation would not celebrate the New Year in solidarity with the people of Gaza.
In a brief speech to the country, Kakar called on everyone to observe sobriety and humility on New Year's Eve and to express solidarity with the Palestinian people.
“Keeping in mind the seriously concerning situation in Palestine and to show solidarity with our Palestinian brothers and sisters, there will be a strict ban by the government on holding any kind of event for New Year,” he said.
He said that over 21,000 Palestinians were killed so far by the Israeli forces that "crossed all limits of violence and injustice" with around 9,000 children dead since the Israeli bombardment began on October 7.
"The whole Pakistani nation and the Muslim world are in a sheer state of anguish over the massacre of innocent children and genocide of unarmed Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank."
He said Pakistan had dispatched two aid packages to Palestine while a third package was being prepared.
He said Pakistan was engaged in talks with Jordan and Egypt to provide timely aid to Palestine and to evacuate the injured present in Gaza.
Mr Kakar said Pakistan tried to highlight the plight of the Palestinian people on various global forums and would continue to do so in the future as well to stop the Israeli bloodshed.
Pakistan's New Year celebrations are traditionally not huge due to the influence of Islamic groups who try to stop the festivities through various methods, including the use of force.
With PTI inputs