KARACHI: A passenger was arrested by French police this week for attacking members of a cabin crew after he was told not to smoke on a Paris-bound Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) flight, the national airline’s spokesperson said. 

The incident took place on the Islamabad-Paris PIA flight PK-749 on Sunday after a woman flight attendant told a passenger to stop smoking, the airline said. The passenger refused and behaved rudely, prompting the crew and the captain to intervene. 

The PIA said the passenger injured the flight attendant’s arm by grabbing and twisting it and punching her on the back. He also attacked the flight steward and the captain, but they managed to snatch the cigarette from the passenger. 

“The captain informed French authorities during the flight as per the rules, and police arrested the passenger upon the plane’s arrival in Paris,” the PIA spokesperson said in a statement on Monday. 

“A police report has been filed after recording the statements of the flight attendants and having them medically examined.” 

The spokesperson said that French laws are very strict in this matter, hoping that the passenger will not be granted any concession. 

“The passenger has been blacklisted by the PIA and he will not be able to travel on the national airline again,” the spokesperson said. 

He commended the PIA’s staff for tackling the matter professionally, adding that the law would now take its due course. 

The PIA began operating flights to Paris for the first time in four years from January this year. Its authorization to operate flights to the European Union had been suspended by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) in June 2020 over concerns about the ability of Pakistani aviation authorities to ensure compliance with international standards.

The national airline operates two weekly flights to Paris. 

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is set to launch today, Tuesday, the second phase of mandatory training for Hajj pilgrims, the Pakistani religion ministry said, with 142 workshops scheduled to be held in 72 cities nationwide.
Pakistan conducted its first phase of training for Hajj pilgrims in Jan. that continued across the country until late Feb., with intending pilgrims trained via audio-visual devices and other materials.
Pakistani religious affairs minister Sardar Muhammad Yousaf has said that around 90,000 pilgrims are expected to perform Hajj under the government’s scheme this year, promising to ensure the best possible facilities for them.
As part of the second phase, Hajj workshops will be held in Islamabad, Mirpur Khas, Mirpur Mathilo, Qila Saifullah, Chakwal and Pishin districts on Tuesday, while training sessions will be held in Hyderabad, Mirpur Mirs, Zhob, Qila Abdullah, Chaman, Daki, Ziarat, Mianwali and Nowshera districts on Wednesday.
“The second phase of Hajj pilgrim training will continue until April 24,” the Pakistani religion ministry said. “Overseas Pakistanis will receive training at the relevant Hajj camps after returning home.”
Training programs will be held in Tando Adam, Nowshehro Feroze, Loralai, Haripur, Khushab and Kohat districts on April 10, while workshops in Benazirabad, Dadu, Mardan and Dera Ismail Khan districts will be held on April 11, the religion ministry said.
Pakistan and Saudi Arabia signed in Jan. the Hajj 2025 agreement, under which 179,210 Pakistani pilgrims were supposed to perform the annual pilgrimage under the government and private schemes.
However, the South Asian country failed to fulfill its private Hajj quota of pilgrims, prompting Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif last week to constitute a three-member inquiry committee to probe why Pakistani authorities had failed to comply with the Kingdom’s Hajj 2025 policy and consequently lost the quota.
Pakistan will begin its Hajj operations on Apr. 29, when the first flight carrying Hajj pilgrims will depart from the eastern city of Lahore to Saudi Arabia.