DUBAI: US Dutch Palestinian model Gigi Hadid spent time in Seoul this week to launch her fashion brand Guest in Residence at a pop-up event in the city, while her sister Bella Hadid was in Dubai for the opening of Chopard’s new boutique in Dubai Mall.

For the event, Gigi wore a piece from her own collection—a chic brown cashmere coat called the Grizzly Coat—styled with straight-leg jeans, black loafers and a gold necklace. She wore her blonde hair in a sleek bob, complemented by winged eyeliner and a mauve lip.

The supermodel also shared glimpses of her time in Seoul on Instagram. She hosted a dinner for her guests, which included notable names from the music and fashion world, such as CL, leader of the K-pop girl group 2NE1.

CL posted a clip with Hadid on her Instagram welcoming her to Seoul and shared a look at the dinner’s star-studded guest list. Attendees included NewJeans members Hanni, Danielle, and Minji, “Squid Game” star Jung Ho-yeon and Korean American rapper Jay Park.

The Guest in Residence pop-up is located in Seoul’s trendy Gangnam district and will run through Nov. 24.

Meanwhile, Bella surprised fans in Dubai on Tuesday with a visit to Dubai Mall. She joined Chopard’s creative director Caroline Scheufele for the ribbon-cutting ceremony before entering the boutique to meet with industry insiders and clients.

Later, she made a glamorous appearance at an after-party held at Jaipur Rugs in Alserkal Avenue. Wearing a flowing gold gown from Elie Saab’s Fall/ Winter 2004 Haute Couture collection, she smiled and waved to fans while mingling with guests and clients at the event.

Among the event's attendees was US Iraqi beauty mogul Huda Kattan, who posed for a photo with Bella and Scheufele.

Bella was named the new face and global ambassador for the luxury Swiss jewelry house in September.

Hadid first showed off Chopard creations at the 2021 Cannes Film Festival and has been spotted wearing jewelry by the maison on various red carpets as of late, including multiple sightings at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival. 

Bella has also been making waves in the beauty industry with her own fragrance brand, Orabella, which launched in May.

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has repatriated nearly 800,000 Afghan nationals that were residing in the country ‘illegally,’ according to government figures released on Wednesday, a year after the launch of a deportation drive that has drawn widespread criticism from international governments and rights organizations.

Authorities began expelling foreigners living in the country illegally from Nov. 1, 2023, following a spike in suicide bombings which the Pakistan government says were carried out by Afghan nationals or by militants who cross over into Pakistan from neighboring Afghanistan. Islamabad has also blamed illegal Afghan immigrants and refugees for involvement in smuggling and other crimes. The Taliban government in Kabul says Pakistan’s security and other challenges are a domestic issue and cannot be blamed on the neighbor. 

A cash-strapped Pakistan that was navigating record inflation, alongside a tough International Monetary Fund bailout program last year, had also said at the time it announced the deportation drive that undocumented migrants had drained its resources for decades and it could no longer afford to house them.

“Repatriation of Afghans residing illegally in Pakistan is continuing,” state broadcaster Radio Pakistan reported on Wednesday as it shared latest figures of the deportation drive. “The total figure of returnees has reached 799,208.”

Until the government initiated the expulsion drive last year, Pakistan was home to over four million Afghan migrants and refugees out of which around 1.7 million were undocumented. 

Afghans make up the largest portion of migrants, many of whom came after the Taliban took over Kabul in 2021, but a large number have been present since the 1979 Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.

Islamabad insists the deportation drive is not aimed at any particular nationality but at all ‘illegal aliens’ but the drive has disproportionately hit Afghans. 

Last July, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced an extension for expired UNHCR-issued Proof of Registration (PoR) cards given to almost 1.5 million Afghans for a year after the UN refugee commissioner asked for a pause in the country’s plan to repatriate refugees. The cards, which the UN describes as a “critical” identity document, would now be valid until June 30, 2025.

In October 2023, when Pakistan announced phase one of the “Illegal Foreigners’ Repatriation Plan,” it gave a 30-day deadline for “undocumented” aliens to leave the country or be subject to deportation, putting 1.4 million Afghan refugees at risk.

In phase two of the “repatriation plan,” around 600,00 Afghans who hold Pakistan-issued Afghan citizenship cards (ACCs) will be expelled while phase three will target those with Proof of Registration cards.

The deportation drive has also effected trade and the flow of people between Pakistan and Afghanistan. 

Before the repatriation plan, Pashtun tribes straddling both sides of the British-era border’s Durand Line historically moved freely for businesses and communal life. But since last year, for the first time since the border was drawn over a century ago, Pakistani authorities are requiring residents to show a passport and visa before crossing over, paperwork virtually none of them possess. Previously, residents living in border towns could pass through using only their Pakistan national identity cards.

The deportation drive and border restrictions have also led to a spike in tensions between Pakistan and the Taliban rulers in Afghanistan. The Taliban deny militants are using Afghan soil to launch attacks or that Afghans are involved in militancy in Pakistan.