Pakistani President Arif Alvi says his country will not establish ties with Israel and that it supports the Palestinians because the Gaza Strip has faced "unprecedented atrocities," just like the northern Indian state of Kashmir.
Alvi told reporters Sunday that recent speculation about an Israeli jet landing at an Islamabad airport was baseless.
He was speaking before departing for a three-day visit to Ankara, his first official overseas trip since entering office last month. Alvi is traveling to Turkey at the invitation of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Israeli journalist Avi Scharf tweeted on Thursday that a private Israeli business jet had flown to Islamabad from Tel Aviv and remained in the Pakistani capital for nearly 10 hours, sparking media speculation.
Several Pakistani ministers and the Civil Aviation Authority denied the report.
