Trump Brings Pakistan Onboard For 'Gaza Peace Board'; Has He Forgotten Osama Bin Laden And 9/11?

In a bizarre move, US President Donald Trump has extended an invitation to Pakistan to join the Board of Peace for Gaza to support the effort for bringing peace to the troubled region. Ironically, Trump has invited Pakistan on peace board, a country which has a bloody history of harbouring terrorists. 

President Trump had invited Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to become part of the body he has set up to implement a peace agreement in Gaza to end the war and create permanent peace. 

Besides Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Egypt, Jordan, Indonesia, and Qatar have accepted the invitations to join the board.

What is the Gaza Board of Peace?

The US president unveiled the board as part of the second phase of a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip. In October, Israel and militant group Hamas agreed to Trump's peace plan. The board is being projected by Washington as a new international body to usher in peace and stability in Gaza and beyond, triggering speculations that it may respond to other global conflicts as well.

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What Pakistan said on joining Board Of Peace?

According to the statement, Pakistan looked forward to continuing to play a constructive role as part of the Board of Peace for the achievement of these goals as well as to end the suffering of Palestinians.

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“Pakistan would like to announce its decision to join the Board of Peace (BoP) as part of its ongoing efforts to support the implementation of the Gaza Peace Plan under the framework of the United Nations Security Council Resolution 2803,” the Foreign Office said in a statement. Although it was not clear whether cash-strapped Islamabad would contribute a huge amount of $1 billion for joining the board.

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The FO said that Pakistan also hoped that these efforts would lead to the realisation of the right to self-determination of the people of Palestine, through a credible, time-bound political process, consistent with international legitimacy and relevant UN resolutions, resulting in the establishment of an independent, sovereign, and contiguous State of Palestine, based on the pre-1967 borders with Al-Quds Al-Sharif (Jerusalem) as its capital.

Several countries have received invitations to join the Peace Board. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin have also received invitations to join the board.

Osama bin Laden's Pak link: Why is Trump’s invitation to Pakistan ironic?

It is a widely known fact that Pakistan provided support for Osama bin Laden, a mastermind who carried out a deadly terror attack in America’s World Trade Centre in 2001. Around 3,000 people were killed on record. Several reports indicate the toll might be higher.

After the deadly attack, America launched a massive hunt for bin Laden, who was found living in a compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan. He was killed by a team of United States Navy SEALs on May 2, 2011— nearly a decade after the 9/11 attacks. The compound was located just half a mile from Pakistan's premier military training academy, Kakul Military Academy (PMA), in Abbottabad.

Nearly seven years after 9/11, Pakistan-harboured and the Pakistani Army-backed terror network unleashed a major terrorist attack in Mumbai. More than 160 were killed in the deadliest attack. Earlier in April last year, at least 26 tourists were killed in broad daylight in Jammu and Kashmir. India had given proof of how Pakistan-backed terrorists carried out the deadly attack.

Irrespective of the facts, Trump ironically chose Pakistan to join the so-called peace board for the Gaza redevelopment plan.

(With inputs from agency)