Attack on church in Quetta against Islamic teachings: NSC

• Pakistan will not accept Trump’s ‘unilateral’ decision on Jerusalem
• COAS due to brief Senate on national security today

ISLAMABAD: The National Security Committee (NSC) in its meeting on Monday condemned the recent attack on a church in Quetta, with Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa due to brief Senate on national security, including terrorism, on Tuesday

The top security huddle condemned Sunday’s terrorist attack on the Bethel Memorial Methodist Church in Quetta and termed it to be “against the fundamental tenets of peace and tolerance taught by Islam”.

The NSC also reviewed the situation arising out of US President Donald Trump’s decision to declare Jerusalem (Al-Quds) as Israel’s capital and said that Pakistan could not accept the unilateral decisions taken by the Trump administration on Jerusalem (Al-Quds).

The meeting said that Pakistan would continue to impress upon the United States its moral and political responsibility towards a just and fair resolution of the issue.

The committee said that Pakistan could not accept the unilateral decisions taken by the Trump administration on Jerusalem and that the country would continue to impress upon the United States its moral and political responsibility towards a just and fair resolution of the issue.

The sixteenth meeting of the National Security Committee was chaired by Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi. Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal, National Security Advisor Lt General (retd) Nasser Khan Janjua, Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee Chairman General Zubair Mehmood Hayat, Chief of the Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa, Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Zafar Mahmood Abbasi, Chief of the Air Staff Air Chief Marshal Sohail Aman, and senior civil and military officials attended the meeting.

The committee viewed that Pakistan would also continue to impress upon the US administration the need to revoke the steps taken in this regard.

The foreign secretary briefed the meeting on the OIC’s extraordinary summit and Council of Foreign Ministers meetings on Jerusalem held in Istanbul on December 13, following the decisions are taken by the Trump Administration to recognise Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and its announcement to shift US Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

Observing that these two decisions had created an incomprehensible situation not just for the Muslim Ummah but also for the international community in general, the committee emphasised that the establishment of a sovereign Palestinian state remained a major objective of the Muslim Ummah.

The committee also reviewed the rapidly evolving security situation in the Middle East as well as the latest developments in Pakistan’s relations with the GCC states and Iran. After thorough analysis, the meeting reaffirmed that Pakistan would continue to work for the unity and solidarity of the Ummah, for which it shall intensify its efforts in view of the growing challenges.

The interior secretary apprised the committee of the progress made in each of the twenty areas of the National Action Plan (NAP). The committee observed that while fair progress had been made in the implementation of the NAP, certain areas, such as policy and institutional reforms, needed more commitment and attention.

The committee also observed that as a responsible member of the international community, Pakistan would continue to fulfil its obligations under the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) framework, which would be shared in due course with the FATF.  The NSC tasked the national security advisor to finalise the National Security Policy at the earliest after taking all stakeholders on board.

Meanwhile, Chief of the Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa is due to brief the Senate Committee of the Whole House tomorrow.

The committee will begin its meeting at 10 AM and according to a notice. The COAS and Military Operations DG would brief members on the emerging national security paradigm for Pakistan with respect to recent visits and developments.