ISLAMABAD: A Pakistani diplomat at the United Nations said on Thursday Israel’s decision to sever ties with the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, could cut off the only lifeline available to the people of the war-ravaged Gaza Strip, urging the international community to prevent such an outcome.
Established in 1949 to provide education, health care and other services to Palestinians in their homeland, UNRWA has long faced Israeli criticism. Since October 2023, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government has accused the agency of facilitating Hamas activities, leading to two controversial bills in Israeli parliament that banned the agency from operating in the region.
Israel’s recent decision to notify the UN of its termination of ties with the UN agency comes amid escalating fears of famine in Gaza. The decision also coincides with the deaths of nearly 180 UNRWA staff members in the ongoing conflict, drawing global condemnation, as UN officials highlight the unprecedented loss of life among their workers.
“Today, millions of Palestinians fear that the public services upon which their lives depend will soon disappear,” First Secretary Ansar Shah at Pakistan’s UN mission said while participating at a debate about the issue at the world body. “They fear that their children will be deprived of education, that illnesses will go untreated, and that social support will stop.”
“We have to answer the call of the Palestinian people,” he continued. “We must take concrete actions, uphold the UN Charter and international legality, or risk a collapse of a world order built on the foundations of UN Charter.”
The Pakistani diplomat emphasized that UNRWA was essential for delivering vital services to Palestinians.
He warned that without intervention from member states, the UN agency could collapse, plunging millions of Palestinians into chaos.
Shah also reiterated Pakistan’s stance by calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and an end to Israel’s “wanton violence in the West Bank.”
“The demonization and delegitimization of UNRWA must be halted,” he said, urging UN member to reaffirm their commitment to the agency through financial and political support.
 

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s anti-polio program said on Friday the country had reported a new case of the polio virus in the southwestern Balochistan province, taking the nationwide tally to 49 this year.
A new case was reported from Jaffarabad in Balochistan, according to updated figures on the website of the Pakistan Polio Eradication Program. 
Pakistan, along with neighboring Afghanistan, remains the last polio-endemic country in the world. Starting from late 2018, Pakistan saw a resurgence of cases and increased spread of polio, highlighting the fragility of gains achieved in the preceding three years.
“Genetic sequencing of the samples collected from the child is under process,” the polio program said in a statement.
This year, 24 cases have been reported in Balochistan, 13 in Sindh, 10 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and one each in Punjab and the federal capital of Islamabad. In the early 1990s, Pakistan reported around 20,000 cases annually but in 2018 the number dropped to eight cases. Six cases were reported in 2023 and only one in 2021. 
Pakistan’s polio eradication program began in 1994, and the number of cases has declined dramatically since then. 
But Pakistan continues to face challenges in its fight against polio, including militancy, with polio workers regularly targeted by attacks, particularly in the northwestern KP province.
The polio program has adapted to respond to climate disasters such as floods, but continues to face disruptions. There are also gaps in supplementary immunization activities, especially in areas where the virus is still present.