‘Can’t trust Pakistan’: Voices rising from Israel over Islamabad’s efforts for ceasefire

 ‘Can’t trust Pakistan’: Voices rising from Israel over Islamabad’s efforts for ceasefire

 

While the US and Israel are waging war against Iran, Pakistan is trying to broker a ceasefire between Washington and Tehran.

Meanwhile, attacks on Tehran and other cities in Iran by the US and Israel are still ongoing.

Voices are also being raised from Israel over Pakistan’s mediation efforts. For the past few days, an interview given to Indian media by an Israeli envoy is also being shared on social media, in which he said that he does not think Pakistan will be able to succeed in its mediation efforts.

But some fake clips of this interview have also surfaced on social media, in which he can be heard saying that Israel is going to increase defense equipment for India fourfold. However, he did not say anything like that in his real interview.

It should be noted that in another interview given to Indian media, Israeli Ambassador to New Delhi Reuven Azar said that ‘We are not going to trust a country with which we do not have diplomatic relations.’ We are confident in our decision and in the decision of the US president.’

Flor Hassan Nahum, Image source: Getty Images

‘India can be a better mediator than Pakistan’

In an interview with Indian news agency ANI, Flori Hassan Nahum, the trade envoy at the Israeli Foreign Ministry, was asked how Israel views Pakistan’s mediation role, as Pakistan does not have diplomatic relations with Israel.

Her response was, ‘I don’t know what the Pakistanis are trying to do. I think they are trying to prove themselves somehow important. They themselves are a big problem in the world of jihadist terrorism.’

‘But they can try. I don’t think they will be very successful. I guess they just want to get themselves in the middle of this issue that is currently the center of attention on the global stage.’

Israeli correspondent comments on fake interview clips

However, fake clips of this interview are also circulating on social media. In one such clip, she can be heard saying that ‘Israel is angry with only one person at the moment and that is Pakistani army chief Asim Munir.’

In this distorted clip, she says that Asim Munir is ‘trying to distance the US president from Israel… He is telling Arab countries not to attack the Iranian terrorist regime… That is why Israel is quadrupling military equipment for India.’

On this, Flor Hassan Nahum commented that in this fake interview clip, she was ‘given a Pakistani accent, that should have been the clue.’

What is the discussion going on in Israel about Pakistan’s role as a mediator?

There have been mixed views in Israel over Pakistan’s mediation efforts.

As the Israeli ambassador said in an interview with Indian channel NewsX Live, “We cannot rule out the possibility that the US is putting pressure on Iran with Pakistan’s help.”

Meanwhile, Middle East analyst Zvi Berel wrote in his column for Haaretz that four countries (Egypt, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan) are forming a new regional alliance amid Iran’s ceasefire efforts.

He referred to a meeting of the foreign ministers of the four countries on Sunday, which was hosted by Islamabad.

Zvi Berel wrote that if an agreement is reached, “these countries could offer to act as guarantors.”

“But even if they do not succeed in ending the fighting, these countries have another goal. They want to create a framework for military cooperation.”

The Israeli analyst further wrote that Israel “has been dreaming of an Arab NATO for many years... But the war with Iran has made its chances extremely slim.

In a column for the Israeli newspaper YNet News, Middle East analyst Amin Ayoub writes that “Pakistan presents itself as a neutral facilitator... but it prefers to provide security to Tehran rather than establish peace.”

He also mentioned Iran’s allowing Pakistani flagged ships to pass through the Strait of Hormuz. He says this shows that relations between Islamabad and Tehran are “based on transactions.”

In a column published for The Jerusalem Post, analyst Eli Poda believes that new alliances are being formed in the Middle East, which Israel should be concerned about.

A professor of Islamic and Middle Eastern affairs at the Hebrew University says that “the real fear is Israel’s increasing isolation in the region.” Although there is currently no immediate threat to the peace and diplomatic relations agreements that have been in place despite the Gaza war, Israel's deteriorating relations with regional countries, particularly Egypt and Jordan, will also affect the possibility of moving forward with diplomatic resumption with more countries in the region, particularly Saudi Arabia, after the war.