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Pakistani Civic Leaders Visit Israel

(Media Line-Ynet News) Felice Friedson - Sabin Agha, a Pakistani investigative journalist and documentary filmmaker, recently visited Israel with a delegation of Pakistani civil society leaders organized by Sharaka, a nonprofit dedicated to promoting dialogue and coexistence in the Middle East. She said that despite the general pro-Palestinian sentiment in Pakistan, state repression has prevented mass anti-Israel protests from breaking out. Agha wondered what was so egregious about Israel to warrant the Pakistani passport being marked with "This passport is valid for all countries of the world except Israel. I wanted to find out what Israel has done to Pakistan. And I found out completely the opposite," she said. "Whenever we would go to a restaurant or meet people on the streets, if we mentioned...I'm from Pakistan...there was an opulence of smiles and warm welcomes. 'Oh, you're from Pakistan, welcome to Israel.'" One participant, S., said of Pakistani society, "We are an antisemitic nation. The state has peddled this narrative for a long time, and seminaries are preaching it day in and day out." Even in the supposedly cosmopolitan city of Karachi, the main street has been painted with American and Israeli flags so that pedestrians trample on them.
2025-03-25 00:00:00
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