Pakistan says Israel's refusal to withdraw forces from Gaza 'serious setback' to peace plan

Pakistan says Israel's refusal to withdraw forces from Gaza 'serious setback' to peace plan Pakistan has expressed its rejection of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's opposition to the establishment of a Palestinian state. Foreign Ministry spokesman Tahir Andrabi said that a Palestinian state stands in "accordance with international law and UN resolutions", and added that its statehood had "an established international legality". Andrabi argued that Israeli rejections cannot alter the legal and diplomatic reality of the issue, saying: "Remark to the contrary to this established international legality means nothing," With regards to Netanyahu's remarks about his refusal to withdraw Israeli forces from Gaza, Andrabi told reporters in Islamabad that this would constitute "serious setback to the decision taken at the Board of Peace, because the disarmament of Hamas and the evacuation of Gaza by Israeli troops were twin commitments".