��������

KARACHI: Pakistani politician and author Mian Raza Rabbani on Tuesday launched a rededicated edition of his 2020 novella The Smile Snatchers, dedicating it to the children of Gaza.

According to Gaza health authorities, at least 20,000 children have been killed since Israel launched its military operation in Gaza in October 2023.

On Tuesday, Rabbani, a senior leader of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and former chairman of the Senate, relaunched his book, saying the violence in Gaza had outstripped even the darkest fictional realities he once imagined in his writing.

“This book, which I wrote in 2020, and which was about the suffering of children in conflict areas, and in which I wrote some stories as fiction, stories that were related to Palestine, today, what we see unfolding in reality goes far beyond what I had written,” he said.

The Smile Snatchers follows the story of Zaheer, a struggling artist haunted by visions of suffering children from around the world. Through his art, he seeks to preserve their lost innocence, a metaphor Rabbani said resonates even more deeply today.

The author said he had intended to write a new work but was emotionally paralyzed by the scale of the devastation.

“My heart wanted to write something else, but neither my pen nor my mind supported me,” he said. 

“But then a thought crossed my mind… I decided that it would be appropriate to rededicate this book to the children of Gaza who have suffered genocide and apartheid at the hands of the Zionist occupying state.”

BHUTTO-ZARDARI WARNS AGAINST ‘BETRAYAL’ OF GAZA CEASEFIRE

Pakistan’s former foreign minister and PPP chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, who attended the launch of the book, praised Rabbani’s rededication as “a fitting tribute” amid what he called “history’s first live-streamed genocide.”

“I would also like to thank Raza Rabbani Sahib for thinking, especially at this time and in these days, of dedicating the book to the children of Gaza,” he said. “Like most of the world, every Pakistani stands in full solidarity with the Muslims of Gaza and Palestine.”

Bhutto-Zardari welcomed the newly announced ceasefire in Gaza but warned that Israel’s history of violations warranted caution.

“While the whole world welcomed the declaration of a ceasefire… history has shown us that if any country has violated ceasefires the most, it is this Zionist regime,” he said. 

“So, while we welcome this ceasefire and hope it will continue, the entire Muslim Ummah will be watching this closely to ensure the ceasefire is not broken.”

The PPP chairman added that the war had targeted not only civilians but professionals on the front lines of humanitarian work.

“This genocide has not only claimed children, it has also been a genocide of journalists. It has been a genocide of doctors and nurses as well,” he said.

Bhutto-Zardari also referred to Pakistan’s participation in recent diplomatic engagements in Egypt, where Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif attended the ceasefire ceremony at the invitation of US President Donald Trump.

“There is a restlessness, a doubt, a danger, a fear about how we can be sure that there won’t be some betrayal of this agreement,” he said.

ISLAMABAD: A leading Pakistani diplomat briefed foreign envoys in Islamabad on the recent escalation of hostilities along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, highlighting the country’s “legitimate security concerns” and its resolve to protect its territorial integrity, the foreign office said in a statement on Tuesday.

The fighting began late Saturday when Afghan forces struck multiple Pakistani military posts. Kabul claimed to have killed 58 Pakistani soldiers in response to what it described as repeated violations of Afghan territory and airspace. Pakistan’s military gave different figures, saying it lost 23 soldiers and killed more than 200 “Taliban and affiliated terrorists” during retaliatory fire along the frontier.

Foreign Secretary Ambassador Amna Baloch gave a comprehensive briefing to resident ambassadors in Islamabad on the recent developments along the Pak-Afghan border, according to an official statement.

“She underscored Pakistan’s legitimate security concerns and its unwavering resolve to protect its territorial integrity and national security,” the Foreign Office said.

Pakistan has long accused Afghanistan of allowing militants affiliated with the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and theBaloch Liberation Army (BLA) to use its soil to launch attacks against Pakistani civilians and security forces.

Kabul denies the allegations, blaming Islamabad for failing to manage its internal security.

Last week, Pakistan’s military vowed to do “whatever is necessary” to defend its borders after Kabul accused Islamabad of violating Afghan airspace and bombing a border town.

The recent border clashes have also disrupted bilateral trade between the two countries, leaving thousands of traders stranded and goods worth millions of dollars stuck at key crossings.

Foreign governments, including ��������, China and Russia, have expressed concern over the fighting and urged both sides to exercise restraint as an informal ceasefire appeared to be holding.