Islamabad:
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (FO) has tried to distance itself from a controversy over the presence of the Shama June Columnist at the United Nations Pakistan Security Council (UNSC) meeting, after its appearance caused a generalized online debate.
In a clarification issued in X on Friday night, the FO, without appointing June, said: “The individual in question was not in the Official Charter of Credit for the Pakistan delegation to the 80th session of the UNGA, signed by the Vice Prime Minister and the Minister of Foreign Affairs.”
“As such, their seats behind the Minister of Defense did not have the approval of the Vice Prime Minister/Minister of Foreign Affairs,” the statement added.
The controversy broke out on September 25 when Defense Minister Khawaja Asif, addressed a CSNU session on artificial intelligence. The photos of the event were quickly extended on the Social Network Platform X, which shows June sitting behind the minister. Users also resurfaced several of their previous publications allegedly supporting Israel, which caused critical fierce.
Clarifying the matter, Asif said he had spoken in the session instead of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who was committed elsewhere while attending the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UGA).
“This woman or who sat behind me was and is at the discretion of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs,” Asif told reporters. He emphasized his personal and long data commitment to the Palestinian cause and remembered his friends and ties with the Palestinians of his years in Abu Dhabi.
“During the last 60 years, I had an emotional attachment and a personal commitment to Palestine,” said the minister. “My views on Gaza are clear and I express them openly. I hate Israel and Zionism.”
“Who is this woman, why she is with the delegation and why she was sitting behind me? Only the FO can answer these questions. It is not appropriate for me to answer in her name.”
He pointed out his record in X as proof of his solidarity promoted by faith with Palestine.
Responding to the uproar, Juneja herself turned to X, publishing screenshots of her recent comment on Gaza. “Young people call me Zionist when for the past two years I have tweeted on Gaza almost daily, calling [Israeli PM] Netanyahu a war criminal and showing Israeli atrocities, “he wrote, using a derogatory term often applied to PTI supporters.
“Once again, this whole campaign has launched against me because they only fear me,” he added.
The episode caused reactions of the entire political and civic spectrum. Former Human Rights Minister Shireen Mazari said that “one could not sit behind a minister at the United Nations General Assembly for UNSC or the United Nations Assembly unless they were identified as an official government representative.”
“So, who allowed this to happen and why? Is there a political agenda covered at work, namely the entity Rogue Israel, Bagram Base, Abraham Acts? The Republican Party must be cleaned, who is responsible?”
