By Sardar Khan Niazi

In the midst of relentless bombardment and a humanitarian catastrophe, the temporary pauses in fighting over Gaza have offered fleeting windows of relief, that is to say, respite, for a besieged population. However, respite is not peace and must not become a curtain behind which the international community shirks its responsibilities. For months now, the people of Gaza have lived under siege, bombarded day and night, with essential infrastructure destroyed, hospitals overwhelmed, and lives reduced to a daily struggle for basic survival. A pause in the violence — however fragile — brings a moment to breathe: wounded can be evacuated, aid convoys may enter, and displaced families may find temporary shelter. Pakistan itself has described such pauses as crucial respite for Gaza’s suffering population and has repeatedly urged a durable ceasefire. Yet these pauses remain ephemeral because they skirt the central question: what happens after the guns fall silent? Without a plan for reconstruction, accountability, and a just political framework, Gaza’s wounds cannot heal. A respite that merely delays the thunderstorm accomplishes little for those languishing in ruins. The delays in reviving hostilities should not lull the world into complacency. Indeed, many ceasefires have proven fragile. Israel has reneged, resumed bombing, or undermined withdrawal commitments. Experts recently warned that such ceasefires might even mask sinister agendas — relocation, depopulation, or erasure of Palestinian identity. For the people of Pakistan, whose hearts have long been aligned with Palestine, the moral calculus is clear. We cannot treat Gaza’s suffering as an episodic spectacle, to be lauded when a pause comes, and then forgotten once the bombardment resumes. A genuine respite must translate into sustained pressure: diplomatic, economic, legal, and moral. First, peacemakers should reaffirm and anchor in action a clear policy: immediate, unconditional ceasefire; full lifting of the blockade; unobstructed delivery of humanitarian aid; and maintenance of Gaza’s territorial integrity and civilian governance. At the UN Security Council, Pakistan has already called for decisive action to prevent Gaza from teetering into total devastation. These appeals must be matched with persistent advocacy, alliances, and international mobilization, not rhetorical flourishes. Second, all like‑minded states should work toward an international peace conference — one that is inclusive of Palestinians, regional stakeholders, and the major powers — with enforceable guarantees and transparency. Reintroducing the two‑state solution, anchored in international law and pre‑1967 borders, must not be dismissed as utopian. As Pakistan’s Foreign Office has underlined, the path to peace runs through respect for UN resolutions and the rights of Palestinians. Third, civil society and media across the world should maintain pressure — not only through protests or declarations, but through oversight of aid flows, tracking of human rights violations, and campaigning for legal accountability. The world must not forget that behind every casualty statistic is a child, a father, a mother — a broken household with shattered aspirations. Fourth, humanitarian assistance must not be politicized. Aid must reach those in greatest need — the wounded, the orphaned, the displaced — without diversion or delay. Any peace that emerges without security for civilians, health care, clean water, housing and livelihood support will collapse under its own contradictions. Finally, peacemakers must remain consistent. An alignment of principles — justice, human dignity, the rule of law — must guide foreign policies. If respite for Gaza is to mean anything, it must herald not a return to war, but a transition to peace. In short, let us not mistake a lull in bombs for a turning point in history. Gaza’s people deserve more than respite. As the world watches, it must champion not just the pause, but also the promise that follows — the promise of recovery, justice, sovereignty, and peace.