ISLAMABAD: The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) clarified a news item and denied allegations regarding a visit to Israel by former Special Assistant to the Prime Minister (SAPM) on Overseas Pakistanis Syed Zulfiqar Bukhari.
Responding to queries regarding the media reports alleging a visit to Israel by the former aide, the spokesperson termed that these reports “baseless and misleading”. He clarified that no such visit to Israel had been undertaken. In this regard, categorical rejection was also issued today by the former SAPM himself, he added.
The spokesman recalled that foreign ministry had rebutted similar false reports earlier on December 18, 2020. As reiterated earlier, there was no change in Pakistan’s principled position, he added. He said that Pakistan had consistently called for a two-state solution, with pre-1967 borders and Al-Quds Sharif as the capital of Palestinian State.
Zulfikar Bukhari has again denied reports that he covertly travelled to Israel last November to meet Mossad spy agency chief. In December last year, he claimed that he had been with the Rawalpindi deputy commissioner at the time of the alleged November visit.
The issue resurfaced again after a Hebrew newspaper, Israel Hayom, published a news report regarding the alleged visit, quoting an unnamed source in Islamabad.
In a tweet, Avi Scarf of Israel’s Haaretz newspaper said Bukhari travelled to Israel to meet Mossad spy agency chief Yossi Cohen. He stated that the news report had been attributed to a “source in Islamabad”, adding that it was published after permission from the Israeli military censor.
Refuting the claims, Bukhari said, “Funny bit is Pakistani paper says I went to Israel based on ‘Israeli news source’ and Israeli paper says I went to Israel based on a ‘Pakistani source’. Wonder who this imaginative Pakistani source is.”
Prime Minister’s Focal Person on Digital Media Arslan Khalid also dispelled the claims saying, “Bukhari had clarified last year that he was never sent by the government to Israel. This Israel-India-Pak fake news peddlers network is getting so boring and predictable.”
He further urged the media to show a little maturity and not promote fake news. “The last time when the same propaganda was run, not only did Bukhari deny and sent a legal notice but the Middle East Monitor, who reported it, also had to apologise,” he added.
The rumours first spread after a news report claiming an adviser of prime minister had met Israeli officials at the Tel Aviv airport in November 2020 after getting approval for the visit from the US.
The report had claimed that an unnamed adviser with a British passport was taken to the “foreign ministry of Israel where he met several political officials and diplomats and delivered the message of the Pakistani premier”.
