PIA aims to repatriate over 35,000 pilgrims from Saudi Arabia following Hajj

Pakistani officials welcomes Hajj pilgrims in Karachi, Pakistan on June 21, 2024. (PIA)
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Updated 21 June 2024
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PIA aims to repatriate over 35,000 pilgrims from Saudi Arabia following Hajj

  • The national airline is among several aviation services working to bring Pakistani pilgrims back to their homeland
  • PIA says it will operate its special flights to Peshawar, Islamabad, Sialkot, Lahore, Multan and Karachi until July 21

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s national air carrier announced on Friday it would bring back more than 35,000 pilgrims from Saudi Arabia via 171 flights after transporting 325 devotees to Lahore this afternoon who had performed the annual Hajj pilgrimage.

Pakistan launched its post-Hajj flight operation on Thursday, bringing back 1,200 pilgrims through seven flights to four different cities in the country.

The authorities have announced the continuation of special flights to repatriate 70,000 pilgrims on the government Hajj scheme until July 21.

Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) is among several aviation services working to bring Pakistani pilgrims back to their homeland.

“PIA’s post-Hajj flight PK 764 from Jeddah to Lahore arrived this afternoon carrying 325 pilgrims,” the airlines said in a statement. “The pilgrims were adorned with garlands of flowers.”

“PIA will bring back more than 35,000 pilgrims from Saudi Arabia through 171 flights,” it added. “Under the government Hajj scheme, approximately 19,500 pilgrims, under the private Hajj scheme about 14,900, and around 630 Hajj assistants will be brought back to Pakistan.”

Pakistan’s national airlines will operate post-Hajj flights to Peshawar, Islamabad, Sialkot, Lahore, Multan and Karachi.

PIA announced pilgrims from Sukkur and Quetta would travel to their cities via Karachi.

The airlines said it would conclude its post-Hajj flight operation on July 21.


Pakistan eyes Google collaboration for community-driven innovation and AI adoption

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Pakistan eyes Google collaboration for community-driven innovation and AI adoption

  • Pakistan is currently focused on AI training in the fields of education, workforce development and industrial innovation
  • Minister says enhanced collaboration will accelerate Pakistan’s integration into the global AI ecosystem, digital empowerment

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and American multinational corporation and technology giant Google are seeking to collaborate with each other in community-driven innovation and the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) in the South Asian country, according to the Pakistani IT ministry.

The statement came after IT Minister Shaza Fatima Khawaja’s meeting with Google’s Regional AI Developer Ecosystem and Communities team to explore strategic collaboration in advancing Pakistan’s AI landscape.

The Google team provided an overview of their developer ecosystem, contributions of Google Developer Groups (GDGs), community-based AI initiatives, and impactful platforms like Taleemabad.

In the wider policy discussion, Khawaja emphasized the government’s focus on AI training across three critical domains: mainstream education, workforce development including freelancers, and industrial innovation.

“She stressed the need for inclusive access to tools such as the AI Seekho program, sandbox environments, and cloud credits,” the IT ministry said. 

“She called for enhanced collaboration between Google and the Ministry of IT & Telecommunication (MoITT) to accelerate Pakistan’s integration into the global AI ecosystem and promote equitable digital empowerment.”

During the meeting, Khawaja also had an interactive session with the N+1 team, a group of young Pakistani developers recently selected among the global top 10 in the Google Solution Challenge. The team proudly represented Pakistan at the regional showcase in the Philippines.

Khawaja praised their achievement and called it a testament to the country’s emerging talent pool and the importance of nurturing such success stories through structured support and mentorship, according to the IT ministry.

On Friday, Google said it has expanded access to its advanced video generation model, Veo 3, allowing users in Pakistan and over 150 other countries to create eight-second videos from photos with sound.

The move comes amid a global surge in interest in creative AI tools, with content creators using different platforms to generate video stories and bring still images to life. With Pakistan’s growing pool of digital creators, the rollout is expected to spur local innovation in short-form content.


Pakistan, Bahrain vow to boost security cooperation

Updated 12 July 2025
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Pakistan, Bahrain vow to boost security cooperation

  • Officials of the two countries held discussions in Manama on counter-terrorism, human trafficking and anti-narcotics
  • Pakistani interior minister calls enhancing cooperation in counter-narcotics, anti-human trafficking ‘need of the hour’

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Bahrain have resolved to further strengthen their security collaboration in various fields, Pakistani state media reported on Saturday.

The consensus was reached during a meeting between Pakistan’s Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi and his Bahraini counterpart, General Sheikh Rashid bin Abdullah Al-Khalifa, in Manama.

The two sides held discussions on bilateral cooperation in counter-terrorism, combating human trafficking and anti-narcotics efforts as well as to make Pakistan-Bahrain Joint Security Committee more effective.

“Enhancing cooperation in counter-narcotics and anti-human trafficking efforts is the need of the hour,” Naqvi was quoted as saying by the Radio Pakistan broadcaster.

The Bahraini interior minister said his country valued Pakistan’s cooperation in security and other fields.

Bahrain is one of the important countries in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), and a favorite destination for the Pakistani workforce since the early 1970s, according to the Pakistani foreign ministry.

Both countries have a Joint Ministerial Commission (JMC) at the level of the foreign ministers and a trade volume that has ranged between $500 million and $1 billion in recent years.


Pakistan plans to launch transshipment operations between Gwadar and Gulf region

Updated 12 July 2025
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Pakistan plans to launch transshipment operations between Gwadar and Gulf region

  • The country has been looking to capitalize on its geostrategic location to boost transit trade and foreign investment
  • Islamabad also seeks to cut container dwell time at ports by up to 70 percent to improve trade competitiveness, ease congestion

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistani government is actively engaging private shipping liners to commence transshipment operations between Gwadar and the Gulf region, Pakistani state media reported on Friday. 

The statement came from officials at a high-level meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Gwadar Port operationalization, which was presided over by Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal.

Maritime officials informed the participants that initial cargo categories will include minerals, dates, seafood, and cement, targeting sectors such as mining, fisheries, and processing industries.

Iqbal said Gwadar’s geostrategic position as the shortest trade route to the Gulf and Central Asia highlighted the port’s potential as a regional transshipment hub, the Radio Pakistan broadcaster reported.

“Iqbal emphasized the need to showcase Gwadar Port in international road-shows as a strategic trade hub linking the Gulf and Central Asia,” the report read. “He directed stakeholders to promote the port’s cost-effective trade routes and available incentives for international businesses.”

Gwadar, situated along the Arabian Sea, lies at the heart of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), under which Beijing has funneled tens of billions of dollars into massive transport, energy and infrastructure projects in Pakistan.

Pakistan, slowly recovering from a macroeconomic crisis under a $7 billion International Monetary Fund (IMF) deal, has been looking to capitalize on its geostrategic location to boost transit trade and foreign investment for a sustainable economic recovery.

The country plans to cut container dwell time at its seaports by up to 70 percent to improve trade competitiveness and ease congestion, while it last month reduced port charges for exporters by 50 percent at the country’s second biggest Port Qasim.


Three million Afghans likely to return this year after Pakistan, Iran introduce new policies

Updated 12 July 2025
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Three million Afghans likely to return this year after Pakistan, Iran introduce new policies

  • Over 1.6 million Afghans have already returned from Pakistan and Iran this year
  • The figure already exceeds the UNHCR’s initial forecasts of 1.4 million for 2025

UNITED NATIONS: Three million Afghans could return to their country this year, a UN refugee official said Friday, warning that the repatriation flow is placing intense pressure on an already major humanitarian crisis.

Iran and Pakistan have introduced new policies affecting displaced Afghans, with Tehran already having given four million “illegal” Afghans until July 6 to leave Iranian territory.

“What we are seeing is the undignified, disorganized and massive exodus of Afghans from both countries, which is generating enormous pressures on the homeland that is willing to receive them and yet utterly unprepared to do so,” the

UNHCR representative in Afghanistan, Arafat Jamal, said during a video press conference from Kabul.

“Of concern to us is this scale, the intensity and the manner in which returns are occurring.”

Over 1.6 million Afghans have already returned from Pakistan and Iran this year, the large majority from Iran, Jamal added. The figure already exceeds the UNHCR’s initial forecasts of 1.4 million for 2025.

The office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees now estimates three million coming into Afghanistan this year, Jamal said.

The UN agency said over 30,000 people per day have streamed across the Islam Qala border into Afghanistan, with 50,000 crossing on July 4 alone.

“Many of these returnees are arriving having been abruptly uprooted and having undergone an arduous, exhausting and degrading journey. They arrive tired, disoriented, brutalized and often in despair,” Jamal said.

The United Nations has taken emergency measures to reinforce water and sanitation systems intended to serve 7,000 to 10,000 people per day, as well as vaccinations and nutrition services.

Many who have crossed the border have reported pressure from Iranian authorities, including arrests and expulsions.


Pakistan issues flood warning for multiple provinces till July 17

Updated 12 July 2025
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Pakistan issues flood warning for multiple provinces till July 17

  • The development came after nationwide death toll from rains, floods rose to 90 since late June
  • Relief efforts continue in several areas, with tents, ration and blankets distributed among affectees

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) has issued a fresh alert and warned of potential flood and flash flood risks in various regions of Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and Balochistan provinces from July 12 till July 17, with at least 90 people killed in rain-related incidents since late June.

In Punjab, widespread rainfall is expected across districts including Jhelum, Chakwal, Talagang, Mandi Bahauddin, Sargodha, Hafizabad, Gujranwala, Gujrat, Sialkot, Faisalabad, Lahore, Narowal, DG Khan, Rajanpur and Rahim Yar Khan.

This weather activity may result in medium to high flows in torrents of DG Khan and Rajanpur, while nullahs originating from the Pir Panjal range in northeastern Punjab may experience a significant rise in water levels.

Rainfall is expected in KP’s Dir, Swat, Besham, Abbottabad, Mansehra, Haripur, Karak, Kohat, Kohistan, Nowshera, Peshawar, Mardan, Malakand, Charsadda, Bannu, Buner, Swabi, and Waziristan. This may lead to increased flows in the

Kabul River and its tributaries, including Swat, Panjkora, and Kalpani nullahs. River Swat and Panjkora, along with their associated streams, may swell due to rainfall in their catchments. River Kabul at Nowshera is expected to reach low flood levels.

In Balochistan, an active weather system is likely to trigger isolated rains and thunderstorms from July 13 till July 17 in Ziarat, Quetta, Mastung, Kalat, Surab, Zhob, Barkhan, Musakhel, Loralai, Awaran, Khuzdar, Dera Bugti and surrounding areas, with a possibility of flash flooding in local streams and nullahs, particularly in the torrents originating from the Kirthar Range, according to the NDMA.

“Authorities are advised to ensure the readiness of emergency teams, availability of machinery, and clearance of drainage systems. Tourists should avoid high-altitude areas, while residents in vulnerable zones must secure valuables, vehicles, and livestock, and keep essential supplies,” the NDMA said in its alert issued late Friday.

“District administrations, especially in northeastern and central Punjab, should deploy dewatering equipment to manage urban flooding. Citizens are urged to avoid flooded roads, low bridges, and causeways.”

The death toll from monsoon downpours in Pakistan rose to 90 on Friday after three children died in rain-related incidents in the eastern Punjab province, according to the NDMA.

Punjab has reported 32 deaths, followed by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa with 30 deaths, Sindh with 16 deaths, Balochistan with 11 fatalities and one man lost his life in Azad Jammu and Kashmir.

Meanwhile, relief operations continue in affected areas, with authorities distributing tents, ration bags, blankets, sandbags, quilts, gas cylinders, mattresses, kitchen sets, mosquito nets, plastic mats, hygiene kits and food packets to affected families. Pakistan has also rolled out a location-based SMS alert system to warn citizens living in flood-prone areas about imminent weather threats.

Pakistan, home to over 240 million people, is consistently ranked among the countries most vulnerable to climate change. In 2022, record-breaking monsoon rains and glacier melt triggered catastrophic floods that affected 33 million people and killed more than 1,700.