Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Asif triggered a major diplomatic storm after calling Israel "evil", a "curse for humanity", and a "cancerous state" in a now-deleted social media post. The remarks came during fragile US-Iran ceasefire talks and while Pakistan projected itself as a mediator in West Asia. Israel reacted sharply, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu calling the statement outrageous and unacceptable. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa`ar accused Pakistan of using antisemitic rhetoric and questioned Islamabad’s credibility as a neutral peace broker.