Why Pakistan has banned all New Year celebrations
Pakistan has decided to ban all New Year celebrations, urging citizens to "observe simplicity" to show solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas. In a televised address on Thursday, caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar announced the Pakistan government had "completely banned all kinds of events regarding the New Year celebrations."
Why does this story matter?
It's worth noting that the war in Gaza began on October 7, when the Palestinian terrorist group killed nearly 1,200 Israelis and took around 240 hostages during its surprise attacks on the Jewish nation. Israel responded with a multi-pronged army aggression in Hamas-controlled Gaza, killing more than 21,000 Palestinians so far. Moreover, the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict has also triggered a major humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip.
Kakar expresses sadness over 'genocide of unarmed Palestinians in Gaza'
Furthermore, Kakar claimed Islamabad tried highlighting the plight of Palestinians on various global forums and will continue to do so in the future as well to stop the conflict. "The whole Pakistani nation and the Muslim world are in a sheer state of anguish over the massacre of innocent children and genocide of unarmed Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank," the caretaker PM said.
Pakistan sent 2 aid packages to Palestine: Kakar
On the other hand, the 52-year-old highlighted that Pakistan had also dispatched two aid packages to Palestine while a third package was being readied as well. Moreover, Kakar stated that Islamabad was engaged in discussions with Egypt and Jordan to deliver timely aid to the affected Palestinians and to evacuate all the injured individuals in the war-torn province.
No New Year's Eve fireworks in Sharjah: Know more
Sharjah, the city which is an emirate of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), also took a decision similar to Pakistan's on Thursday and banned New Year's Eve fireworks due to the ongoing conflict in Gaza. In a post on Facebook, the Sharjah Police said that the ban was "a sincere expression of solidarity and humanitarian cooperation with our siblings in the Gaza Strip."
