- PTI founder always attempted to damage national image: Asif
- Urges PTI supporters to thoroughly analyse Imran Khan’s motives.
- Ex-PM could “reevaluate Pakistan’s stance on Israel”: Israeli media.
After an Israeli publication suggested Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan could reevaluate Pakistan’s stance on Israel, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif, in a jibe at the jailed leader, claimed the former premier never openly condemned Israeli barbarism against Palestinians.
The defence czar was referring to an opinion piece in The Times of Israel titled “An Unlikely Ally: How Imran Khan Could Shape Israeli-Pakistani Relations,” which prompted Khan’s political opponents to accuse him of compromising Pakistan’s long-standing stance against Israel.
“Israeli media has written in favour of the PTI founder,” said Asif while speaking to Geo News, adding, “[…] which endangers our [national] image as Pakistan has an important position in the Muslim world.”
The publication highlighted that the ex-premier, who ruled the country from 2018 to 2022 before being ousted from office via a no-confidence motion, had “publically maintained Pakistan’s traditional support for the Palestinian cause” and “dismissed the idea of normalising relations with Israel”.
However, Imran’s “pragmatic approach” to foreign relations during his tenure suggested that he “may have been more open to reevaluating Pakistan’s position on Israel than his public statements indicated”, it read.
Asif alleged that the publication confirmed Imran’s “political adoption” by the Israeli media and termed him “a product of Zionists”.
He went on to say that the PTI founder had always attempted to damage the national image. Pointing towards the blog, Asif said that “Imran is standing with the Zionist butchers” amid the massacre of Palestinians in Gaza.
The federal minister also blamed Imran for “misguiding the Pakistani youth” and appealed to the PTI founder’s supporters to thoroughly analyse the ex-premier’s objectives.
The blog also claimed that “Imran’s close relationship with the Goldsmith family plays a significant role in understanding his potential shift in stance towards Israel”.
The Israeli media’s publication sees Imran’s support for Zac in the London mayoral polls as his “loyalty to the [Goldsmith] family and their broader network, which in turn have supported him in the past”.
The ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) senior leader slammed the cricketer-turned-politician for “campaigning for a Jew instead of a Muslim” in London mayoral elections.
Asif was pointing towards Khan’s campaigning for Zac Goldsmith, brother of his former wife Jemima Goldsmith, in 2016 against mayoral candidate Sadiq Khan.
It is worth mentioning that Labour Party’s Sadiq had defeated Zac from the UK’s Conservative Party by nearly half a million votes to become the first Muslim mayor of London.
The online newspaper also urged Israel and its allies to ensure that “Imran is free again to participate in Pakistani politics” as the politico’s “unique position, relationships, and strategic thinking could influence Israeli-Pakistani relations”.
The 71-year-old former prime minister has been in prison for more than a year after he was booked in a plethora of cases, including the Toshakhana case, cipher case, and the un-Islamic marriage case.
Despite securing relief in several cases, the PTI founder remains behind bars after he was booked in a new Toshakhana reference and other cases related to the May 9 mayhem.
