In the now-deleted post, Khawaja Asif described Israel as ‘evil’ and ‘a curse for humanity,’ saying it was carrying out ‘genocide’ in Lebanon, just hours before US-Iran peace talks were set to begin in Islamabad.
Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Asif deleted a social media post in which he had described Israel as “cancerous” and “a curse for humanity” following deadly Israeli strikes on Lebanon that killed more than 300 people and wounded nearly 1,200, in what Israel said was just 10 minutes of strikes that were carried out immediately after the US and Iran agreed a temporary truce.
“Israel is evil and a curse for humanity, while peace talks are under way in Islamabad, genocide is being committed in Lebanon,” Asif wrote on Thursday in the now-deleted post on X.
“Innocent citizens are being killed by Israel, first Gaza, then Iran and now Lebanon, bloodletting continues unabated,” he had written in the tweet. “I hope and pray people who created this cancerous state on Palestinian land to get rid of European jews burn in hell.”
The remarks came in response to a wave of Israeli strikes across Lebanon, launched shortly after a fragile, Pakistan-brokered ceasefire between the United States and Iran was announced.
Iran this week agreed to a fragile two-week ceasefire, brokered by Pakistan, with the United States that could lead to peace negotiations after threats of annihilation from US President Donald Trump.
On Saturday, officials from the US and Iran are scheduled to meet for negotiations in Islamabad, which is mediating the crucial ceasefire and hosting backchannel talks.
However, immediately after Pakistan announced a truce between the US and Iran, Israel bombarded over 100 areas in Lebanon, perpetrating one of the worst mass killings in Lebanon since the end of the Arab country’s civil war in 1990.
Furious with the indiscriminate attacks that has mostly killed civilians, according to local media, Pakistan immediately demanded an end to Israeli massacres in Lebanon and warned of possible Israeli sabotage to US-Iran talks.
Tensions remain high over the scope of the ceasefire. Pakistan and Iran maintain that Lebanon was covered under the truce framework, while both Israel and the United States deny this.
Lebanon has urged Pakistan to ensure it remains part of any broader ceasefire arrangement.
Israeli officials strongly criticised Asif’s remarks. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office called them “outrageous” and said such statements were incompatible with Pakistan’s role as a mediator.
The Pakistani defence minister’s “call for Israel’s annihilation is outrageous. This is not a statement that can be tolerated from any government, especially not from one that claims to be a neutral arbiter for peace,” it said.
Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar also condemned the comments, saying language describing Israel as “cancerous” is effectively calling for its annihilation,” and reiterated that “Israel will defend itself against terrorists who vow its destruction.”
