GILGIT: Last week, Pakistani businessman Hajji Abdul Hameed, 61, assumed charge as the minister for local government after winning a seat in a November election in Pakistan’s northern Gilgit-Baltistan region.
But Hameed’s journey to GB’s legislative assembly has not been a straight, or an easy, one.
Hameed, who comes from a poor family in the Ghanche district of Gilgit-Baltistan, did not have the means to attend school beyond the fifth grade. After working for a firewood supply company for a few years, he went to Kuwait in 1987 in search of a better life. For two years, he worked day and night at low-paid odd jobs, and then as a helper in the office of an oil company, before his employer moved him to Saudi Arabia.
In 1994, Hameed moved to Dubai, where he remained employed as an office helper and a laborer for more than a decade. In that time, he said he was able to save enough money to open a small cafe called Ahl-Al-Sham, serving Saudi and Lebanese food. The cafe marked a turning point in his life.
“After the café, I was able to expand my business in the UAE,” Hameed said, adding that he subsequently took on a partner and with his financial help went on to launch a real estate business and a cleaning company. He rented flats out to people on short-term leases and also began supplying staff to renowned hotels, including the Dubai Ladies Club of Sheikh Muhammed.
“I have provided UAE work visas to around 200 Pakistanis, mostly hailing from Gilgit-Baltistan region,” Hameed said. “Over a dozen of them have also launched their businesses in the UAE.”
Last year, Hameed handed over his UAE businesses to his sons and decided to retire and spend his remaining days at home in Pakistan.
“I was not interested in politics,” he said, when asked if he returned to Pakistan to become a politician. But well-wishers in his constituency, Hameed said, convinced him to contest elections for the Gilgit-Baltistan legislative assembly, held on November 15, in which he fought as an independent contender and won against a candidate from the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, which rules in the center. He has since joined the PTI.
Gilgit-Baltistan forms part of the disputed Kashmir region claimed by both India and Pakistan. The local assembly in which Hameed won a seat has few powers. Pakistan’s National Assembly and Senate have no representation from Gilgit-Baltistan, and the region receives only a fraction of the national budget.
But Prime Minister Imran Khan has said recently his government will grant provisional provincial status to the region, giving it greater political representation.
Candidates for the legislative assembly polls also campaigned on a platform of development, promising to uplift the long-neglected region.
“GB is an underprivileged area and lots of issues are being faced by the people,” Hameed said. “I requested the authorities to give me the local government ministry, so that I could work on the local government level. Improvement in health and education in the region is my top priority.”
UAE-based office boy-turned-businessman makes it to Pakistani legislative assembly
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UAE-based office boy-turned-businessman makes it to Pakistani legislative assembly
- Haji Abdul Hameed assumed charge as minister for local government after winning a seat in a November election in the northern Gilgit-Baltistan election
- His journey to the assembly has seen him work for years as an office helper and laborer in Gulf countries before becoming a business owner
Imran Khan supporters wanted to ‘take over Islamabad through violent protests’ — minister
- Protesters dispersed from Islamabad after sweeping raid by security forces after midnight on Wednesday, Khan’s party says 20 killed
- Government says four troops killed and over 900 protesters, included Afghan nationals, arrested since protest began on Sunday
ISLAMABAD: Jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s supporters had planned to “take over the capital through violent protests,” a Pakistan government spokesperson said on Thursday, a day after security forces dispersed marchers who had breached security barricades to reach the heart of Islamabad to demand Khan’s release.
Thousands of supporters of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party had gathered at the city’s historic D-Chowk square on Tuesday after setting out on Sunday in a protest convoy led by Khan’s wife Bushra Khan and Ali Amin Gandapur, the chief minister of the PTI stronghold province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The convoy broke through several lines of security and reached the edge of the capital’s highly fortified red zone, home to key government and diplomatic buildings.
The protest was called off after security forces raided the site in complete darkness soon after midnight on Wednesday, firing rubber bullets and tear gas, according to police and government officials who deny using live ammunition during the operation, which police conducted alongside paramilitary forces. The PTI says at least 20 of its supporters have been killed, while the government says four troops died.
The Islamabad police chief said on Wednesday 954 people, including Afghan nationals, had been arrested since the protest march began on Sunday.
“They were not peaceful protesters at all as they were armed with guns and slingshots,” Federal Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said at a briefing with members of foreign media in Islamabad. “They wanted to take over the capital through violent protests.”
The minister said the government took “preventative measures” to defuse the situation, denying the use of live ammunition and direct fire on protesters by security forces.
“Both the public hospitals in Islamabad, Polyclinic and PIMS [Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences], have categorically denied receiving any dead bodies of protesters or any gunshot wounds victims,” the information minister said.
“There was no live ammunition with the security forces. Let me say categorically that no massacre was carried out to disperse the protesters.”
The minister accused the PTI of putting out “fake pictures and videos” on social media to exaggerate casualties.
Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal, also present at the briefing, asked the PTI to share the names of its supporters who had been killed, saying the government had exercised “utmost restraint” to prevent bloodshed at the hands of what he described as a “violent mob.”
“The security forces used teargas to disperse the thin number of the armed protesters,” Iqbal added. “We defused the situation with the least intervention of the security forces.”
Gandapur, the chief minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province who was leading the protests and fled when the operation began, has accused authorities of using excessive force against protesters who he said were peaceful. He said “hundreds” had sustained bullet wounds.
“Both Imran Khan’s wife and I were attacked directly,” Gandapur told a press conference in the city of Mansehra in the province he rules.
Khan’s wife Bushra Khan escaped unhurt from the protest convoy when the raid began. The PTI had said she would address the press conference with Gandapur on Wednesday, but she did not appear even though the event was delayed by hours.
PTI spokesperson Zulfikar Bukhari PTI said earlier that the protest seeking Khan’s release had been called off, citing what he called “the massacre.” But Gandapur said the protest was a “movement” and would continue until Khan himself called it off.
Pakistan wins the toss and elects to bat in third and final ODI against Zimbabwe
- Pakistan recovered from a first-match loss with a 10-wicket win in the second ODI
- ODI series will be followed by three Twenty20 matches at Bulawayo from Sunday
BULAWAYO, Zimbabwe: Pakistan won the toss and elected to bat in the third and final one-day international against Zimbabwe on Wednesday.
Pakistan bounced back from a shocking loss in the rain-affected first match with a 10-wicket win in the second game after a maiden ODI century from Saim Ayub.
The tourists retained the same winning combination with Faisal Akram, Abrar Ahmed, and Salman Ali Agha the three spin options.
Ahmed and Salman sliced through the Zimbabwe batting lineup in the second match by sharing seven wickets between them with leg-spinner Abrar getting 4-33 in his debut ODI.
Zimbabwe brought in wicketkeeper-batter Clive Madande and fast bowling all-rounder Faraz Akram for their first game of the series in place of Brandon Mavuta and Trevor Gwandu.
The ODI series will be followed by a three-match Twenty20 series starting at Bulawayo from Sunday.
US embassy warns of security threat to Pakistani hotel in Peshawar, urges caution
- Serena is part of a luxury hotel chain frequented by foreign visitors, government officials
- Peshawar and other parts of KP have long been vulnerable to militant and extremist violence
PESHAWAR: The United States Embassy in Pakistan issued a security alert on Wednesday, warning of a potential threat to the Serena Hotel in Peshawar and advising American citizens to avoid the area until December 16.
The embassy said it had received credible security information and instructed US personnel to steer clear of the hotel, located on Khyber Road near the Peshawar Golf Club in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
“US citizens are encouraged to avoid the hotel and the area around it during this period and reconsider travel plans,” the alert said.
The advisory also reminded American citizens of the existing “Do Not Travel” warning for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province due to the persistent threat of militant violence, last updated on September 10.
The US mission outlined several actions for its citizens to enhance their safety, including leaving the vicinity of the hotel if found there unexpectedly, reviewing personal security plans, monitoring local media for updates and cooperating with authorities.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, a province bordering Afghanistan, has experienced a surge in militant activity in recent months, with security officials regularly warning of threats to public spaces and high-profile locations.
Pakistani authorities have yet to comment on the nature of the threat or any measures being taken to secure the area.
The Serena Hotel, part of a luxury hotel chain, is frequented by foreign visitors and government officials, making it a high-profile target in a region with ongoing security challenges.
The latest warning underscores persistent concerns about safety in Pakistan’s volatile northwestern region, which has long been a focal point of militant operations and has also witnessed sectarian clashes in recent months.
New 10-day truce after over 110 killed in Pakistan sectarian feuding — officials
- Troops will be deployed at key locations in Kurram to enforce the ceasefire, compensation will be provided to victims’ families
- The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan said 79 people had been killed between July and October in sectarian clashes
PESHAWAR: Feuding communities in northwest Pakistan on Wednesday agreed to a new 10-day ceasefire, as the death toll from a week-long spate of sectarian violence rose to 111, officials said.
“A ten-day ceasefire between the warring parties in Kurram has come into effect as of today,” the office of the Chief Minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, where the district is located, said in a statement.
The statement caps a day of continuing hostilities, with provincial officials saying that the death toll from the latest spate of violence had climbed to 111, including 79 Shias and 32 Sunnis. Another 88 people were injured.
Pakistan is a Sunni-majority country, but Kurram district — in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, near the border with Afghanistan — has a large Shiite population and the communities have clashed for decades.
The provincial minister’s office added that troops will be deployed at key locations in Kurram to enforce the ceasefire and compensation will be provided to the victims’ families.
“Negotiations will continue to ensure lasting peace,” the statement said.
The latest violence began last Thursday when two separate convoys of Shiite Muslims traveling under police escort were ambushed, and at least 43 people were killed.
Provincial officials brokered a seven-day truce this weekend but it did not hold.
Police have regularly struggled to control violence in Kurram, which was part of the semi-autonomous Federally Administered Tribal Areas until it was merged with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in 2018.
Last month at least 16 people, including three women and two children, were killed in a sectarian clash in Kurram.
The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan said 79 people had been killed between July and October in sectarian clashes.
Pakistan hopes for fair deal from ICC on Champions Trophy impasse with India
- PCB says it’s unacceptable that Pakistanis play in India while Indians don’t come to Pakistan
- Pakistan has spent millions of dollars on the upgrade of three stadiums chosen for tournament
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan hopes it will get a fair deal on “equality” when the International Cricket Council (ICC) holds a virtual meeting on Friday to finalize details for next year’s Champions Trophy.
There’s an impasse for the eight-team, 50-over format tournament after India declined to tour Pakistan for the event, scheduled to be held from Feb. 19 to March 9.
A decades-long tense political situation between the two South Asian countries hasn’t seen India playing international cricket in Pakistan since 2008 when it competed in Asia Cup.
Both nations have competed in ICC tournaments with Pakistan touring India last year for the 50-overs World Cup.
“I promise we’ll do what is best for Pakistan cricket,” PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi said in Lahore. “We’re still clear in our stance that it’s not acceptable that we play cricket in India, and they don’t play cricket here. Whatever will happen, will happen on the basis of equality. We’ve told the ICC very clearly, and what happens next we’ll let you know.”
The ICC board could decide the issue in a vote among members.
“Whatever we do, we will make sure the best outcome for Pakistan is achieved,” Naqvi said. “But I repeat, and I am sure you know what I mean, it’s not possible that Pakistan play in India, and they don’t come here.”
Earlier this month, the ICC told the PCB that the Board of Control for Cricket in India had informed the game’s governing body it will not tour Pakistan for the event. The PCB sent an email, asking the ICC reasons behind India’s refusal.
Naqvi said he’s been in “constant touch” with the ICC chairman Greg Barckley, but didn’t say whether he got the answers from the game’s governing body as to why India was not willing to tour Pakistan.
Naqvi, who is also the interior minister in the Pakistan government, said that whatever decision the ICC makes on Friday, he will go to his government for the final approval.
Pakistan has spent millions of dollars on the upgrade of three stadiums in Karachi, Lahore, and Rawalpindi — the three venues chosen for the Champions Trophy. Naqvi said he hoped the renovation of three stadiums will be completed well in time to host the event.
