ISLAMABAD: Over 21,000 Pakistani expatriates in the Gulf states have so far lost their jobs amid the coronavirus pandemic, Special Assistant to Prime Minister (SAPM) on Overseas Pakistanis Sayed Zulfikar Abbas Bukhari told Arab News in an exclusive interview on Friday.
“There were media reports that the United Arab Emirates alone had laid off more than 40,000 Pakistani workers after the COVID-19 outbreak which is completely wrong. In reality, 17,743 Pakistanis were laid off amid the coronavirus crisis in the UAE,” he said, adding that 1,245 Pakistani nationals in Saudi Arabia, 691 in Qatar, 600 in Oman, 500 in Kuwait, 387 in Bahrain and 200 in Iraq had been downsized until this week.
Bukhari hailed Saudi Arabia for ensuring job security for Pakistani nationals since the Kingdom issued a directive preventing companies from sacking Pakistani employees for three months during this difficult period.
“Unlike the UAE, where companies are laying off workers and sending them on forced and unpaid leave, Saudi Arabia is not doing that. Instead, it is giving them full salary,” he said.
The PM’s adviser continued that he had requested measures to support Pakistani workers in the Kingdom during his video call with Saudi Deputy Minister of Labor and Social Development Dr. Abdullah bin Nasser this week, adding that a lot of special measures were also being processed.
“Dr. Nasser informed me that Saudi Arabia had issued a decree through which Saudi companies will not lay off laborers for the next three months and all employees will continue to receive their full salary during the three-month period. The Kingdom also decided to extend the duration of entry and exit visas for Pakistani workers and Pakistani labor force will enjoy free of cost visa extension until December,” he said.
Asked about the repatriation of stranded Pakistanis, Bukhari said the government was moving toward regularizing flights to ensure the repatriation of all those people who wanted to come back to Pakistan.
“Majority of those who want to come back to Pakistan are from the Gulf region. Their number is about 90,000 so far. That is the reason we gave 17 flights to the UAE last week, and next week we are expanding flight operation for repatriation from Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar along with the UAE where over 71,000 Pakistanis are waiting to come back home,” he said.
Bukhari informed that the government would increase the repatriation capacity from 2,000 people a week to 6,500 people a week before increasing it further to 8,000 in a few weeks.
On the issue of expensive air tickets by Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), he said that PIA had reduced the fare of its special flights by 20 to 30 percent in an effort to extend maximum relief to the country’s citizens stranded in the UAE.
“People have uploaded videos on social media, claiming that our embassy in the UAE is giving tickets in black with overcharged rates which is absolutely wrong. No Pakistani embassy is involved in such an activity. However, there can be travel agents who may be overcharging to exploit people who want to return to Pakistan.”
When asked about his role in mismanaging the return of pilgrims from Iran, Bukhari reiterated his stance that he had no role in allowing them back into the country.
“One should simply think about it a little: Do I have the power to open the country’s border which requires five or six different departments to coordinate? Only a prime minister can exercise such authority and order the opening of border,” he clarified.
“I have sued the people who wrongly blamed me and now the case is in court. They played political gimmickry and will now pay the price,” he added.
Asked about a World Health Organization (WHO) report claiming that about 46 percent of Pakistan’s COVID-19 cases had travel history to Iran, Bukhari said: “Zaireen [or pilgrims] who have become the reason for local spread of the virus are those who came back from Iran by air and not those who entered Pakistan through the Taftan border.”
On the number of overseas Pakistanis who lost their lives to the pandemic, he said that his ministry was collecting information but did not have the exact figures.
“Many Pakistanis have died due to the coronavirus but we do not have the exact numbers. We are trying to collect the data but different countries are not providing us the breakdown of the nationalities of COVID-19 victims,” he said, adding that PIA had brought back 17 dead bodies from the UAE during the last few weeks.
“Next week, we will bring back dead bodies from Saudi Arabia as more than 10 bodies are stuck there. We have requests from Italy and other European countries as well, and we will respond to them whenever possible. All of these individuals may not have died due to the coronavirus, but PIA will bring maximum number of dead bodies back without seeking charges,” Bukhari added.
Over 21,000 Pakistani expats from Gulf region laid off amid COVID-19 – Zulfi Bukhari
https://arab.news/yh54f
Over 21,000 Pakistani expats from Gulf region laid off amid COVID-19 – Zulfi Bukhari
- Hails Saudi Arabia for asking companies not to sack Pakistani expats and pay full salaries for three months
- Denies involvement in Taftan border mismanagement, saying only PM can order authorities to open border
Pakistan deploys mobile air monitoring stations in Lahore amid toxic smog
- Each station costs over $322,000, equipped for real-time air quality data
- Smog has enveloped Lahore, Pakistan’s cultural capital, since last month
ISLAMABAD: Authorities in Pakistan’s populous Punjab province have deployed five mobile air quality monitoring stations in Pakistan’s eastern Lahore city, each costing over Rs90 million ($322,000), amid worsening smog conditions, state-run media reported on Thursday.
Lahore, consistently ranked as the world’s most polluted city in live IQAir rankings in recent weeks, is facing hazardous air quality due to cold atmospheric conditions trapping dust, vehicle emissions and smoke from illegally burned fires.
The toxic smog, which has spread to 17 other districts in Punjab, has caused over 40,000 cases of respiratory illnesses this month, according to health officials, prompting authorities to close schools until November 17.
“The Punjab government has established five mobile air quality monitoring stations in Lahore to track the city’s air quality index,” Radio Pakistan reported.
It quoted the Punjab Environment Protection Department official Farooq Alam as saying the mobile stations had been placed in highly polluted areas, such as the Defense Housing Authority, Model Town, Gulberg, Bhatta Chowk and near Shimla Pahari.
Alam told Radio Pakistan that “each mobile monitoring station costs over ninety million rupees,” adding that they are equipped with advanced technology to collect real-time air quality data.
The Punjab administration official, however, did not mention any sustainable solution to the worsening smog condition, which has become a regular feature during the winter season.
Meanwhile, Punjab’s Provincial Disaster Management Authority has urged people to wear face masks as a precautionary measure against smog and to avoid venturing out unnecessarily.
The United Nations children’s agency has warned that the health of 11 million children in Punjab is at risk due to air pollution.
According to a study by the University of Chicago’s Energy Policy Institute last year, pollution could reduce life expectancy in the region by more than five years.
New polio case reported in Pakistan, taking 2024 tally to 49
- In early 1990s, Pakistan reported around 20,000 cases annually but in 2018 the number dropped to eight cases
- This year, 24 cases reported in Balochistan, 13 in Sindh, 10 in KP and one each in Punjab and Islamabad
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s anti-polio program said on Friday the country had reported a new case of the polio virus in the southwestern Balochistan province, taking the nationwide tally to 49 this year.
A new case was reported from Jaffarabad in Balochistan, according to updated figures on the website of the Pakistan Polio Eradication Program.
Pakistan, along with neighboring Afghanistan, remains the last polio-endemic country in the world. Starting from late 2018, Pakistan saw a resurgence of cases and increased spread of polio, highlighting the fragility of gains achieved in the preceding three years.
“Genetic sequencing of the samples collected from the child is under process,” the polio program said in a statement.
This year, 24 cases have been reported in Balochistan, 13 in Sindh, 10 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and one each in Punjab and the federal capital of Islamabad. In the early 1990s, Pakistan reported around 20,000 cases annually but in 2018 the number dropped to eight cases. Six cases were reported in 2023 and only one in 2021.
Pakistan’s polio eradication program began in 1994, and the number of cases has declined dramatically since then.
But Pakistan continues to face challenges in its fight against polio, including militancy, with polio workers regularly targeted by attacks, particularly in the northwestern KP province.
The polio program has adapted to respond to climate disasters such as floods, but continues to face disruptions. There are also gaps in supplementary immunization activities, especially in areas where the virus is still present.
Pakistan calls for renewed international support for UN agency for Palestinian refugees
- Israel’s parliament voted last month to ban UNRWA from operating within Israel and occupied East Jerusalem
- Almost all of Gaza’s population of more than two million people are dependent on aid and services from UNRWA
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Thursday urged the international community to renew its support for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), following the Israeli parliament passing a law last month that will ban the body from operating in the country when it takes effect in late January.
Israel’s parliament voted last month to ban the UNRWA from operating within Israel and occupied East Jerusalem, crippling its ability to work in Gaza and the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Almost all of Gaza’s population of more than two million people are dependent on aid and services from the agency.
The move has faced widespread condemnation, with UNRWA warning the new law could see aid supply chains “fall apart” in the coming weeks. Israel has defended the move, repeating its allegation that a number of the agency’s staff were involved in Hamas’s Oct. 7 attacks last year, which killed 1,200 people.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has told Israel that replacing UNRWA in Gaza and the West Bank would be Israel’s responsibility as the occupying power.
In a statement delivered at the UN Fourth Committee meeting, First Secretary at the Pakistani Mission to the UN, Ansar Shah, underlined the importance of “concrete measures to ensure that UNRWA remains operational and continues its critical humanitarian work for Palestinian refugees.”
“He called on all UN member states to provide political, financial, and operational support to UNRWA and stressed that sustaining and expanding the agency’s operations is essential to mitigating the harmful effects of Israel’s actions in the region,” state broadcaster Radio Pakistan said.
“Pakistan strongly condemns the Israeli attempts to dismantle UNRWA’s operations, which is a blatant violation of the UN Charter, international law, and the provisional measures set by the International Court of Justice (ICJ).”
Shah said the international community must step in to prevent the collapse of UNRWA, which would leave millions of Palestinians without access to essential services like education, health care, and social support.
Founded in 1949, UNRWA works in Gaza, the West Bank, Syria, Lebanon and Jordan, initially caring for the 700,000 Palestinians who were forced from or fled their homes after the creation of the state of Israel. Over the decades, the agency has grown to become the biggest UN agency operating in Gaza.
Since the war in Gaza began in October last year, the agency says it has distributed food parcels to almost 1.9 million people and also offered nearly six million medical consultations across the enclave over the course of the conflict.
More than 200 UNRWA staff have been killed in Israeli attacks since October 2023 in the course of those duties, according to the agency.
Pakistan’s defense minister reports ‘death threat’ to British police, received during subway ride
- Individuals who heckled Khawaja Asif recorded a video, warning he could be stabbed with a knife
- Pakistani ministers have also complained of harassment by Imran Khan’s followers in the past
ISLAMABAD: Defense Minister Khawaja Asif has lodged a report with the British police over the alleged death threat and abuses hurled at him during a train ride in London, the Pakistan High Commission in the United Kingdom said on Thursday.
A viral video surfaced on social media a day earlier, showing an unidentified man hurling abuses at the Pakistani minister in the native Punjabi language, saying, “Take him away before someone stabs him with a knife.”
While Asif chose to ignore the incident and got off the next stop, he visited the Pakistan High Commission on Thursday to formally report the “death threat” to the UK police and demanding an investigation.
“Khawaja Muhammad Asif lodged a report of the train incident with the local police at the Pakistan High Commission,” said a statement released by the Pakistani diplomatic facility. “He informed the police about the details of the knife threat and harassment incident on the train.”
The incident that took place on the Elizabeth Line is now being investigated by the London Transport police, it added.
“I am on a private visit to London,” Asif was quoted as saying. “I was going to Reading via the Elizabeth Line with a loved one.”
He added that a family of three to four persons “harassed and threatened to kill with a knife and used abusive language” against him while making the video.
“I do not know anyone involved in the incident,” the Pakistan High Commission quoted him as saying. “London Transport Police should use CCTV footage to track down the suspects.”
Asif further said death threats and harassment were a “source of shame” for 1.7 million Pakistanis residing in the UK apart from British citizens.
This is not the first time Pakistani ministers belonging to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s coalition government, led by the Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz party, have been heckled or harassed in the UK.
In the past, Pakistan Information Minister Ataullah Tarar and Punjab Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb have endured the same treatment allegedly by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party supporters of jailed former PM Imran Khan.
Seven killed in Pakistan’s northwest as militant’s car bomb explodes accidentally
- The explosion took place in Mir Ali where a militant was fitting a bomb in a car at his residence
- Blast damaged several nearby homes and wounded 14 people, with some in critical condition
PESHAWAR: A powerful car bomb accidentally detonated at the house of a Pakistani Taliban militant in northwestern Pakistan on Thursday, killing at least two children and five suspected militants, police said.
The explosion took place before dawn in the city of Mir Ali in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province when a man identified a local commander of the militants, Rasool Jan, was fitting a bomb in a car at his house, police official Irfan Khan said.
He said other militants from the Pakistani Taliban group quickly arrived at the scene and removed the bodies of the insurgents who died. Authorities later found the bodies of two children in the rubble of the house, which collapsed in the explosion.
The blast also badly damaged several nearby homes and wounded 14 people, including women. Some of the injured were in critical condition in a hospital, Khan said, but he did not provide details.
The Pakistani Taliban and other insurgents in the region often target security forces with assault rifles, rockets, grenades and suicide car bombings, and Khan said it appeared the car bomb was being prepared for such an attack.
The Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, are separate from the Afghan Taliban but have been emboldened by the group’s takeover of Afghanistan in 2021.
Also Thursday, security forces raided a hideout of insurgents in Harnai, a district in restive southwestern Balochistan province, triggering an intense shootout in which a soldier and three insurgents were killed. During the operation, an army major was killed when a roadside bomb exploded near his vehicle, the military said in a statement.
Pakistan’s President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif paid tribute to whom they called the “martyred soldiers” in separate statements. They said the fight against terrorism will continue until the elimination of all insurgents.
