ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has strongly stated at the United Nations that the United States had consented to a ceasefire arrangement encompassing Lebanon, yet Israel is blatantly breaching it through relentless attacks resulting in heavy civilian casualties.
Pakistan’s position, articulated during recent UN sessions, highlights a sharp contradiction in interpretations of the fresh two-week truce between the US and Iran, which Islamabad helped mediate.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced the agreement, declaring an immediate ceasefire “everywhere, including Lebanon,” effective right away.
Regional reports and diplomatic sources confirm that Sharif credited Pakistani efforts, including involvement of Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar and army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir, for securing the pause amid escalating tensions.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, however, publicly rejected the inclusion of Lebanon, insisting the deal did not cover operations against Hezbollah.
This divergence has triggered immediate escalation, with Israeli strikes reported across Lebanese territory shortly after the announcement.
Local Lebanese authorities and media outlets have documented over 300 deaths in the initial wave of renewed bombings, many among civilians in residential and commercial areas.
UN monitors and humanitarian groups have raised alarms over the targeting of dense neighbourhoods in Beirut, the Bekaa Valley, and southern Lebanon.
Pakistan’s envoy at the UN Security Council has condemned these actions as violations of international humanitarian law, pointing to large-scale destruction of civilian infrastructure.
Earlier Pakistani statements at the UNSC noted that Israeli operations in southern Lebanon since the November 2024 Hezbollah ceasefire have already killed more than 400 civilians, including at least 83 children and 42 women, while displacing over 600,000 people.
UNICEF figures cited in those interventions highlighted 84 child deaths in specific phases of the offensive.
The UN Human Rights Office has separately verified at least 127 civilian fatalities in Lebanon from Israeli strikes since the 2024 truce took effect, with Lebanese health ministry data showing totals exceeding 330 killed and 945 injured.
Additional reports indicate thousands of ceasefire violations recorded by Lebanese authorities, including over 2,000 in the final quarter of 2025 alone.
Pakistan has repeatedly urged full respect for Lebanese sovereignty and territorial integrity, calling for an immediate halt to aggression.
In the latest context, Islamabad has expressed concern that continued Israeli actions risk derailing the broader US-Iran truce, potentially drawing in wider regional actors.
Sharif has appealed to all parties via social media to exercise restraint and honour the two-week pause to allow diplomacy to advance.
Pakistan is preparing to host follow-up talks in Islamabad, inviting delegations from the US and Iran.
The mediation role underscores Islamabad’s active engagement in de-escalating Middle East conflicts, even as it maintains its principled stance on Palestinian and Lebanese issues.
Diplomatic observers note that the inclusion of Lebanon in the Pakistani-brokered framework was intended to create a comprehensive calm across fronts.
Yet, Israeli strikes on sites including a cafe in Sidon, killing at least eight and injuring 22, have fueled accusations of deliberate civilian targeting.
Further incidents have involved attacks near UNIFIL positions, prompting Pakistan to condemn the killing of peacekeepers as potential war crimes.
UNIFIL has recorded thousands of air and ground violations since the 2024 agreement, reflecting what it describes as disregard for the truce terms.
Pakistan’s UN representatives have stressed that such patterns undermine the rules-based international order and the credibility of ceasefire mechanisms.
Analysts point to the human cost: over 1.2 million displaced at the peak of earlier escalations, with tens of thousands still unable to return home.
The fresh violations threaten to reverse fragile returns and exacerbate humanitarian needs in southern Lebanon.
Pakistan has called on the international community, particularly the UN Security Council, to ensure accountability and prevent further escalation.
The country’s position aligns with broader calls from regional states for Israel to withdraw from occupied Lebanese areas and respect UN resolutions, including 1701.
As talks loom in Islamabad, the coming days will test whether the two-week window can hold or if Israeli actions will collapse the fragile understanding.
Pakistan maintains that genuine diplomacy, free from selective interpretations of agreements, remains the only path to sustainable peace in the region.
The episode adds to a long list of reported breaches, where data from multiple sources consistently show disproportionate civilian impact.
With hundreds more at risk in ongoing operations, the urgency for restraint has never been greater, Pakistani diplomats have emphasised.