15,000 Pakistani pilgrims airlifted from Saudi Arabia
15,000 Pakistani pilgrims airlifted from Saudi Arabia/node/1645881/pakistan
15,000 Pakistani pilgrims airlifted from Saudi Arabia
Pakistani Hajj pilgrims queued to embark onto a bus at The Hajj Complex in Islamabad on August 23, 2016, before leaving for the annual Hajj pilgrimage to the Islamic holy cities of Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia. (AFP)
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has repatriated 15,000 nationals who went to Saudi Arabia for Umrah and found themselves stranded amid coronavirus outbreak movement restrictions in the kingdom, the Pakistani ambassador to Riyadh told Arab News on Monday.
“When the government of Saudi Arabia stopped flights to Pakistan due to coronavirus pandemic on March 15, there were more than 15,000 Pakistani Umrah pilgrims who were stranded in Jeddah and Medina. We have succeeded in repatriating over 15,000 pilgrims through special flights of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) and Saudi airlines,” Ambassador Raja Ali Ejaz said by phone.
He added that now only 300 Pakistani pilgrims remain in the kingdom and are set to return soon.
Saudi Arabia has halted all international flights and suspended the Umrah pilgrimage in response to coronavirus pandemic.
“We are looking after the needs of all the pilgrims left in Saudi Arabia. We are arranging special flights of PIA for these pilgrims. We are very hopeful to finalize their return by Tuesday,” Ejaz said and expressed gratitude to the Saudi aviation authorities which granted a special permission for the Pakistani pilgrims to leave the kingdom.
The pilgrims are taken care of by the Pakistani Consulate General in Jeddah in coordination with their respective travel agents, he added.
The ambassador said he personally spoke to the president of the General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) of Saudi Arabia to facilitate the departure clearance of the stranded pilgrims.
“I talked to the president of GACA to get permission for special flights for the return of Pakistani pilgrims after suspension of flight operations by Saudi authorities. He assured all cooperation for repatriation of all the Pakistani pilgrims and granted special permission to PIA and Saudi airlines to operate their flights after March 15. This was a big favor for us by Saudi authorities,” Ejaz said.
Haroon Akram, a Pakistani pilgrim who returned to Rawalpindi on a special flight on Friday, thanked both Pakistani and Saudi authorities for facilitating his return.
“I was in Saudi Arabia with my wife to perform Umrah. Our regular return flight was with PIA on March 28 but we have been asked to leave early. We waited in Jeddah for four days during which our embassy officials remained in touch with us and took good care of our needs,” he said.
“We are grateful to both Pakistani and Saudi authorities for arranging the special flight to bring us back home,” he told Arab News.
Amnesty says Pakistan spying on millions through phone-tapping, firewall
Pakistan’s spy agencies can monitor at least 4 million mobile phones at a time through its system, says Amnesty International
In court, Pakistan’s defense ministries and intelligence agencies denied running or even having the capacity for phone tapping
Updated 5 sec ago
Reuters
KARACHI: Pakistan is spying on millions of its citizens using a phone-tapping system and a Chinese-built Internet firewall that censors social media, in one of the most comprehensive examples of state surveillance outside China, Amnesty International said.
The rights watchdog said in a report released on Tuesday that Pakistan’s growing monitoring network was built using both Chinese and Western technology and powered a sweeping crackdown on dissent and free speech. Already restricted political and media freedoms in Pakistan have tightened in recent years, particularly after the military broke with then-Prime Minister Imran Khan in 2022, who was later jailed and thousands of his party activists were detained.
Pakistan’s spy agencies can monitor at least 4 million mobile phones at a time through its Lawful Intercept Management System (LIMS), while a firewall known as WMS 2.0 that inspects Internet traffic can block 2 million active sessions at a time, Amnesty said.
The two monitoring systems function in tandem: one lets intelligence agencies tap calls and texts while the other slows or blocks websites and social media across the country, it said. The number of phones under surveillance could be higher as all four major mobile operators have been ordered to connect to LIMS, Amnesty technologist Jurre van Berge told Reuters.
“Mass surveillance creates a chilling effect in society, whereby people are deterred from exercising their rights, both online and offline,” the report said. Amnesty said its findings draw on a 2024 Islamabad High Court case filed by Bushra Bibi, the wife of former premier Khan, after her private calls were leaked online.
In court, Pakistan’s defense ministries and intelligence agencies denied running or even having the capacity for phone tapping. But under questioning, the telecom regulator acknowledged it had already ordered phone companies to install LIMS for use by “designated agencies.”
Pakistan’s technology, interior, and information ministries, as well as the telecom regulator, did not respond to questions from Reuters about the Amnesty report.
FOREIGN SUPPLIERS
Pakistan is currently blocking about 650,000 web links and restricting platforms such as YouTube, Facebook and X, Amnesty said.
The controls have hit hardest in the insurgency-hit Balochistan province, where districts have faced years-long Internet blackouts, and rights groups accuse the military of disappearances and killings of Baloch and Pashtun activists, charges it denies.
Amnesty said it also reviewed licensing agreements, trade data, leaked technical files and Chinese records tying the firewall supplier to state-owned firms in Beijing.
It added that the firewall is supplied by the Chinese company Geedge Networks. The company did not respond to a request for comment.
Monitoring centers for mobile calls are common globally but Internet filtering for the public is rare, said Ben Wagner, Professor of Human Rights and Technology at Austrian university IT:U.
Having both in Pakistan “constitutes a troubling development from a human rights perspective” and “suggests greater restrictions on freedom of expression and privacy will become more common as such tools become easier to implement,” he said.
Amnesty said the firewall uses equipment from US-based Niagara Networks, software from Thales DIS, a unit of France’s Thales, and servers from a Chinese state IT firm. An earlier version relied on Canada’s Sandvine.
Niagara told Reuters it follows US export rules, does not know end users or how its products are used, and only sells tapping and aggregation gear.
Amnesty said the phone tapping system was made by Germany’s Utimaco and deployed through monitoring centers run by UAE-based Datafusion.
Datafusion told Amnesty that its centers are only sold to law enforcement and that it does not make LIMS, while AppLogic Networks, the successor to Sandvine, said it has grievance mechanisms to prevent misuse.
The other companies named in the report did not respond to requests for comment.
KARACHI: Authorities in Pakistan’s southern Sindh are strengthening embankments and taking precautionary measures whilst bracing for floodwaters to flow downstream from the country’s eastern Punjab province today, Tuesday, where the death toll from heavy rains and deluges have surged to 63.
Sindh’s provincial government has sprung into action over the past few days as floodwaters now race down the Indus basin, fed by Punjab’s three eastern rivers — the Chenab, Ravi and Sutlej — which have been swollen by weeks of heavy rains and dam releases in India. As the torrents merge into the Indus, Pakistan’s longest river, the surge is expected to hit Sindh today, Tuesday, threatening towns and farmlands along the river’s southern course before it empties into the Arabian Sea.
The floods have wreaked havoc in the country’s most populous and breadbasket province of Punjab since late August, killing 63 people and affecting over four million others. Punjab’s information minister Azma Bokhari said on Monday that the province has shifted 2.147 million people and 1.55 million animals to safer places since the latest spell of rains and flooding inundated the province’s villages and districts on Aug. 26. According to Punjab officials, 74,786 people are residing in flood relief camps across the province.
In an advisory issued on Monday, the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) in Sindh warned the current spell of widespread thunderstorm and rain, with scattered heavy to very heavy rainfall and torrential rains, are expected over Sindh and adjoining areas till Sept. 10.
“WARNING: SEVERE URBAN FLOODING is likely in major cities of Sindh province until Sept. 10,” the PDMA advisory said.
As the floods head downstream, the PDMA warned of flash flooding in the nullahs of southern Punjab districts such as Rajanpur and Dera Ghazi Khan. It also warned that flash flooding was expected in Sindh’s Dadu, Jamshoro and Kambar Shahdadkot districts from Sept. 8-10.
The PDMA cautioned that an “exceptionally high flood level” will continue to remain in river Sutlej at Punjab’s Ganda Singh Wala village, owing to release from Indian reservoirs, while the River Indus at Guddu Barrage is expected to attain a high to very high flood level on Sept. 8-9.
With the threat of floods looming over the southern province, authorities have started taking preventive measures in Sindh. Provincial Irrigation Minister Jam Khan Shoro visited the Kashmore-Kahndhkot and Tori embankments in Sindh on Monday to inspect strengthening work at the structures.
“The Sindh government has made preparations for a super flood,” Shoro was quoted as saying by the Sindh Information Department. “Weak embankments are being reinforced.”
He said the Kashmore-Kandhkot embankment, located in northern Sindh near the province’s border with Punjab and Balochistan, is “strong” and currently does not face any danger from the floods.
“The water will reach Guddu Barrage by tomorrow [Tuesday],” Shoro said. “Some water has been released into the sea, and we are diverting flows downstream so that it reaches the sea.”
Shoro was briefed by the deputy commissioner of Kashmore that a large number of people are present in the riverine areas of the district.
“Half of these people are at risk of being affected, for whom boats and other relief supplies have been arranged,” the minister said.
RISING WATER LEVELS
PDMA Punjab aid on Monday evening that water levels remained extremely high in Chenab, Ravi and Sutlej, though flows at some key points were beginning to ease.
On the Chenab River, levels were steady at more than 530,000 cusecs at Trimmu Headworks, a major control structure in central Punjab where the river’s surge is being monitored closely. Flows at Qadirabad and Khanki headworks upstream had started to fall, indicating that the flood peak may already have passed in those areas, though water at Head Muhammad Wala near Multan was still rising.
On the Ravi River, which runs through Lahore before joining the Chenab, flows were falling at Shahdara and Ravi Syphon but were rising further downstream at Balloki, suggesting the flood wave was moving south.
On the Sutlej River, very high flows continued at Ganda Singh Wala, Sulemanki and Islam headworks, while at Panjnad, where the Sutlej meets the Chenab before joining the Indus, levels stood at over 520,000 cusecs.
Officials warned that Panjnad’s capacity had been reduced due to a backwater effect from the Indus, adding to flood risks in southern Punjab.
The Indus itself was recorded at over 411,000 cusecs at Guddu Barrage in Sindh, with gauges upstream showing water still rising, underscoring the threat now shifting downstream into Sindh province.
The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said in its latest report that the nationwide death toll from rains and floods since June 26 when tis monsoon season began had reached 922.
LOWER DIR, Pakistan: The wooden roof of a classroom in the Sabar Shah Primary School hung loose earlier this month, its cracked walls lined with nervous children who shuffle in every morning despite the danger.
They sit at their desks watching the ceiling instead of their books, each rumble of thunder a reminder that the roof could collapse at any time.
Since mid-August, heavy monsoon rains have battered Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province, damaging 704 schools — 669 partially and 35 completely — according to the provincial Elementary and Secondary Education Department. Nationwide, over 900 people have been killed since the monsoon season started on June 26, at least 411 of them in KP.
In the province’s Lower Dir district, the worst-affected in terms of school damage, more than 100 buildings have been hit, leaving thousands of children struggling to continue their education inside unsafe classrooms.
“After the cracks occurred in the walls, we can not focus on our studies because we have the damage to the school building in our mind,” said Abdullah, a 10-year-old third grader. “Since we have no other nearby government school, I have to pursue my education in this same school, whatever the circumstances may be, but my studies are impacted, and I fear for my future.”
The picture taken on September 4, 2025, shows Sabar Shah Primary School destroyed by rains in Pakistan's northwestern Lower Dir district (AN Photo)
Pakistan already has one of the world’s highest numbers of out-of-school children — more than 26 million, according to UNICEF and UNESCO. Teachers and parents warn that the damage to schools in KP risks pushing even more children out of classrooms, as families weigh education against safety.
Hifza Hayat, an 11-year-old in fourth grade, recalled a frightening moment when wood from the roof fell during a lesson.
“The General Science class was in progress and there were clouds,” she said. “The dangling plywood fell on the fan and was pushed to the side.”
She said the fear has made it harder to learn.
A boy peeps through a broken classroom window of the Sabar Shah Primary School in Pakistan's northwestern Lower Dir district on September 4, 2025. (AN Photo)
“During the lessons in the classroom, we look more into the roof and walls,” she said. “We are always double-minded, we can’t remember lessons properly. The studies have been impacted badly, and the situation has left an impact on our minds. If this continues, I would not be able to study.”
Muhammad Yasir, who teaches science and is the school’s in-charge, said the building had been in poor condition even before the recent rains worsened it. Around 300 children are enrolled, and classes are often shifted outdoors when the weather turns threatening.
“When it rains, or even when we see clouds in the sky, we take the students outside and give lessons under the open sky,” he said.
“It is difficult to teach with proper concentration under such circumstances, hence the teaching and learning abilities are significantly impacted.”
“MOUTH OF DEATH”
Deputy District Education Officer Fayaz Ud Din confirmed that Lower Dir had the highest number of damaged schools in the province, adding that he had informed the provincial government that 31 schools needed urgent repair:
“The situation for the children’s education is dire after the rains, as the damage is causing the future of thousands to be in danger and keeping the children in school is a challenge. They need very rapid restoration and a lot of resources to accommodate all these children.”
A student sits next to pile of broken chairs at the Sabar Shah Primary School in Pakistan's northwestern Lower Dir district on September 4, 2025. (AN Photo)
KP Education Minister Faisal Tarakai admitted some schools were so severely damaged that it was not possible to hold classes there. He said the provincial government was in talks with the United Nations and private institutions to ensure repairs.
“We will do whatever is possible,” Tarakai told media recently, “but we will not let a single child be deprived of education.”
Parents are not convinced and said they were torn between ensuring their children’s safety and keeping them in school.
Muhammad Islam, who has four children enrolled, described the daily anxiety of sending them into a damaged building.
“Every morning it feels like sending them into the mouth of death, not knowing whether they will return alive,” he said.
“It has become a constant trauma. I don’t want my children to die. The situation has made me think on withdrawing my children from the school. If no proper measures are taken, I will withdraw my children from the school once this annual session concludes.”
Children attend a class at Sabar Shah Primary School, destroyed by rains in Pakistan's northwestern Lower Dir district on September 4, 2025. (AN Photo)
Psychologists also warned that the dangers go beyond disrupted lessons.
“Children studying in damaged schools risk trauma and flashbacks, which can lead to Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD),” said Khaista Nooreen, a clinical psychologist who works in a private hospital in Peshawar. “It can be seen in children who have gone through such traumas, and fears prevent them from doing well in their lives. in the future.”
For now, the fear is constant for Hayat and her classmates.
“Now when it rains, we worry the walls and the wood and the stones of the walls would fall on us,” she said. “We have no other option but to come to this school and study at God’s disposal.”
KARACHI: The Saudi Tourism Authority (STA) has reinforced its commitment to the Pakistani market with the successful conclusion of a four-day business-to-business (B2B) roadshow in Karachi and Islamabad, offering new travel experiences from the ancient oasis city of AlUla to the Saudi capital of Riyadh.
The roadshow brought together Saudi stakeholders, including leading hotels, destination management companies (DMCs), destination marketing organizations (DMOs), airlines and transport providers, with key Pakistani trade partners.
The initiative introduced exciting new meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions (MICE) opportunities and destination experiences, further strengthening ties between the two countries’ travel and business sectors.
Alongside MICE opportunities, the roadshow highlighted diverse experiences from the heritage and culture of AlUla to the energy of Riyadh, the vibrancy of Jeddah, and the natural beauty of Abha, Taif and AlBaha.
“Through one-on-one business meetings, B2B matchmaking, and MICE focused networking sessions, the program created new avenues for collaboration while showcasing Saudi’s expanding tourism offering,” the STA said in a statement.
Saudi Arabia is home to the two holiest cities of Islam, Makkah and Madinah, which are visited by millions of Muslims from across the world for Hajj and Umrah pilgrimages each year. In recent years, Riyadh has intensified efforts to diversify its economy away from oil to other sectors, particularly leisure travel. Last year, the Kingdom also won a bid to host the 2034 FIFA World Cup.
The Kingdom is positioning itself as an emerging hub for MICE tourism, supported by world-class convention centers, futuristic venues, and an ecosystem designed to host meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions at an international scale.
Pakistan, a predominantly Muslim country that has the world’s fifth largest population of over 240 million, stands as one of the priority nations for Saudi Arabia, and the STA expects more than 2.8 million Pakistani travelers to visit the Kingdom this year, compared to over 2.7 million who visited last year.
The STA presented major entertainment and lifestyle events, such as MDL Beast and Riyadh Season, at the roadshow, underscoring the Kingdom’s ability to combine business with unique cultural discovery. To encourage immediate engagement, exclusive promotions were launched, including exciting summer deals, early-bird discounts for winter AlUla tours, and tailored packages for leisure and group travel.
The Saudi delegation included representatives from Taiba Investments, Saudi Silk Route, Via Konnect, 88 Destinations, Kurban Tours, King Abdullah Economic City (represented by Via Konnect), Qiddiya, Aroya Cruise (represented by JAS Travels), Saudia Airlines, FlyADeal, and the Haramain Train, together with the Kingdom’s rapidly expanding metro and high-speed rail offerings that are enhancing connectivity across key cities.
“This roadshow reaffirms Saudi’s long-term commitment to Pakistan and its vision to offer integrated travel solutions that blend business, culture, and leisure,” the STA said.
Flood-hit India, Pakistan face rising basmati prices amid crop losses
India’s northern states of Punjab and Haryana contribute over 80 percent, while Pakistan’s Punjab province accounts for over 90 percent of the total basmati rice production
Heavy rainfall in late August and earlier this month caused the Ravi, Chenab, Sutlej, and Beas rivers to overflow, flooding these regions in the two countries
Updated 08 September 2025
Reuters
MUMBAI/KARACHI: Heavy rains and widespread flooding in basmati rice-growing regions of India and Pakistan have raised concerns over output of the premium staple, driving prices higher as supplies are expected to fall.
India and Pakistan exclusively grow aromatic basmati rice, which sells for nearly twice the price of regular varieties and is primarily imported by Britain, the Middle East, and the United States.
Floods have severely affected the basmati rice crop, but with waters now receding, losses are expected to remain limited provided there is no additional rainfall, said Nitin Gupta, senior vice president at Olam Agri India.
India’s northern states of Punjab and Haryana contribute over 80 percent of the country’s total basmati rice production, while Pakistan’s Punjab province accounts for more than 90 percent of its output.
Heavy rainfall in late August and earlier this month caused the Ravi, Chenab, Sutlej, and Beas rivers to overflow, flooding these regions.
Initial assessments indicate that crops such as paddy, cotton, and pulses on nearly one million hectares were affected in Punjab and Haryana, said an Indian government official.
In Pakistan’s Punjab province rice, sugarcane, corn, vegetables, and cotton on thousands of hectares were submerged earlier this month.
The floods have hit farmers hard, just as crops such as basmati rice and cotton were nearing harvest, said Ibrahim Shafiq, export manager at Latif Rice Mills Pvt Ltd.
In India and Pakistan, paddy seedlings are usually transplanted in June–July, with harvesting starting in late September.
The industry was expecting a bumper crop, but the damage is likely to reduce supplies and push basmati rice prices higher, Shafiq said.
“Conservative estimates put the damage at 20 percent of basmati rice grown in Pakistan...This would definitely drive up the price for basmati rice in local markets as well as international markets,” Shafiq said.
Traders have raised prices by $50 per ton over the past week, and they could rise further if supply shortages remain significant by the end of the harvest, said Gupta of Olam.
However, some industry officials, including Karachi-based Chela Ram Kewlani, say the current price rise is temporarily fueled by reports of crop damage and is expected to ease once supplies from the new season’s harvest arrive.
