ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Saudi Arabia are in “advanced” stages of talks relating to investment in Pakistan’s copper and gold mines, Pakistani Petroleum Minister Musadik Malik said on Tuesday.
Pakistan has taken steps in recent months to attract foreign investment in its mining sector. The South Asian country is home to the Reko Diq copper and gold mine that is located in its southwestern Balochistan province.
Reko Diq, one of the world’s largest underdeveloped copper-gold mine, is jointly owned by Canadian mining firm Barrick Gold Corp. and Pakistan. Last year, Saudi Arabia offered Pakistan a 15 percent investment stake in the project, Pakistani state media reported in September.
Speaking to Arab News on the sidelines of Future Minerals Forum (FMF) in Riyadh, Malik said Pakistan and Saudi Arabia were in advanced stages of conversations about a “very large asset,” and had done all the requisite homework in this regard.
“Both sides have come up with valuation frameworks, the valuation ranges are in place, and both of the teams are empowered now to negotiate, and right now, we are under non-disclosure. So, I can’t give you the details, but suffice to say that we are expecting very big announcements very soon,” he said.
“It depends, I mean in mining, it’s going to be the mining assets, particularly the copper mining assets, copper and gold mining assets. So, we are very hopeful about that.”
Reuters reported that Saudi Arabian mining company Manara Minerals could invest in Pakistan’s Reko Diq mine in the next two quarters, citing the Pakistani petroleum minister.
Manara, a joint venture between Saudi state-controlled miner Ma’aden and the $925-billion Public Investment Fund (PIF), was set up as part of the Kingdom’s efforts to diversify its economy away from oil, including by buying minority stakes in assets overseas.
“I’m very hopeful that in the next quarter or two we will have very big announcements,” Malik was quoted as saying by Reuters.
“So, we’re very hopeful that this year, we will make some big announcements, both in the way of Reko Diq, but hopefully also” in mines around it, he added.
Asked if Manara would be involved, Malik said, “why not, of course.” Reuters said Manara did not immediately respond to its emailed request for comment.
Manara executives visited Pakistan in May last year for talks about buying a stake in the Reko Diq mine. Manara’s then-acting chief executive Robert Wilt, now CEO of Ma’aden, told Reuters that a stake in Reko Diq was among several opportunities the company was evaluating.
Pakistan is also in talks with other Gulf countries about mining opportunities, Malik added.
Pakistan says in ‘advanced’ talks with Saudi Arabia for investment in copper, gold mines
https://arab.news/mgtqj
Pakistan says in ‘advanced’ talks with Saudi Arabia for investment in copper, gold mines
- Saudi Arabia last year offered Pakistan a 15 percent investment stake in the Reko Diq copper and gold mine
- Reko Diq, one of largest copper-gold mine, is jointly owned by Canadian firm Barrick Gold Corp. and Pakistan
Over 14,500 Pakistani Hajj pilgrims arrive in Madinah via 60 flights
- Another 2,500 Pakistani pilgrims will reach the holy city via 11 flights on Sunday
- The first groups of Pakistani pilgrims are scheduled to depart for Makkah on May 7
ISLAMABAD: More than 14,500 Pakistani Hajj pilgrims have reached the Saudi holy city of Madinah via 60 flights on their way to perform the annual pilgrimage, the Pakistani religious affairs ministry said on Sunday, days after Pakistan launched its Hajj flight operation.
The country launched its Hajj flight operation on April 29 which will continue till May 31. Pilgrims will continue to leave for Madinah during the first 15 days of the operation and afterwards, they will land in Jeddah and travel directly to Makkah.
This year’s annual pilgrimage will take place in June, with nearly 89,000 Pakistanis expected to travel to Saudi Arabia under the government scheme and 23,620 Pakistanis through private tour operators. The total quota granted to Pakistan was 179,210, which could not be met.
“The arrival of Pakistani Hajj pilgrims in Madinah continues and so far, 14,670 pilgrims have arrived in Madinah via 60 Hajj flights,” Muhammad Umer Butt, who speaks for the Pakistani religious affairs ministry, told Arab News over the phone from Madinah.
Another 2,500 pilgrims will reach the Saudi holy city of Madinah via 11 flights on Sunday, according to Butt. The first groups of Pakistani pilgrims are scheduled to depart for Makkah on May 7 after completing their eight-day stay in Madinah. Departures will follow the sequence of their arrival in the city.
“Under the single-route system, all Pakistani pilgrims arriving in Madinah will travel to Makkah for Hajj and return home via Jeddah, while those flying directly to Makkah will visit Madinah before departing for Pakistan,” he shared.
The Pakistan Hajj mission has arranged accommodations near the Prophet’s Mosque in Madinah to facilitate pilgrims in offering voluntary prayers, according to the spokesperson. They are being served food by 13 catering companies, in accordance with Pakistan’s taste and standards.
Pakistani pilgrims praised the arrangements made by the Saudi authorities and the Pakistan Hajj mission.
“It is my first pilgrimage as I have never performed even Umrah before this, but my overall experience remains amazing,” Khurram Ahmed, who hails from Islamabad, told Arab News.
Sajid Ali Channa, an employee of the state-run Pakistan State Oil from Karachi who is performing Hajj for the second time since 2019, described his experience as “entirely new.”
“The Hajj ministry has made tremendous arrangements, and I’ve observed significant improvements, and a clear difference compared to 2019,” he said, adding that catering, transportation, and the problem-solving mechanisms were all functioning efficiently.
Mishkat Rehman, another pilgrim from Karachi who is performing pilgrimage with her family, said they were being provided all facilities.
“We haven’t faced any trouble like long queues at immigration at Karachi airport due to Route to Makkah project and we had a very peaceful travel,” she said.
Pilgrims from across the world are converging in Saudi Arabia to perform Hajj, which begins on the 8th of Dhu Al-Hijjah, the final month of the Islamic calendar.
Gunmen kidnap five policemen in southwestern Pakistan
- Up to 40 gunmen blocked a major highway, intercepting a prison van being transported by a police team
- A senior government official, who asked not to be named, said that two gunmen were killed by security forces
QUETTA: A separatist militant group in southwestern Pakistan on Sunday claimed an attack on a prison van in which five police officers were taken hostage.
Between 30 and 40 gunmen blocked a major highway that cuts across Balochistan province overnight on Friday, intercepting a prison van being transported by a police team, a police official said.
“The prisoners were released later but five policemen have been kidnapped,” a senior police official in the area, who was not authorized to speak to the media, told AFP on Sunday.
He said a rescue operation was underway.
The gunmen also set fire to government buildings and a bank in the area.
A senior government official, who asked not to be named, said that two gunmen were killed by security forces.
Pakistan has been battling a separatist insurgency in Balochistan for decades, where militants target state forces, foreign nationals, and non-locals in the mineral-rich southwestern province bordering Afghanistan and Iran.
The Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), the most active group in the region, claimed the assault in Kalat district.
The BLA has previously targeted energy projects receiving foreign financing — most notably from China.
In March, the group seized a train, taking hundreds of passengers hostage and killing off-duty security forces in a three-day seige.
In tit-for-tat move, Pakistan bans Indian ships from its ports
- Move comes in response to India’s act of banning Pakistani ships, imports on Saturday
- Tensions surged after Apr. 22 attack in Indian-administered Kashmir killed 26 tourists
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan this week decided to close its shipping ports for Indian flag carriers, a statement from the country’s maritime affairs ministry said, as Islamabad’s tensions with New Delhi continue to surge following a deadly attack on tourists.
The move came hours after India announced on Saturday it had banned the import of goods coming from or transiting via Pakistan and barred Pakistani ships.
Both nations have taken a raft of measures against each other since Apr. 22, when gunmen killed 26 tourists in Indian-administered Kashmir. New Delhi pinned the blame on Islamabad, an accusation that Pakistan has vehemently denied and called for a transparent, international probe into the incident.
Pakistan’s maritime affairs ministry said its decision to ban Indian ships from Pakistani ports has been taken to “safeguard maritime sovereignty, economic interest and national security.”
“Indian Flag Carriers shall not be allowed to visit any Pakistani port,” the statement said. “Pakistani Flag Carriers shall not visit any Indian Port. Any exemption or dispensation shall be examined and decided on case to case basis,” it added.
Trade between India and Pakistan has dwindled over the last few years. India announced on Saturday that it was banning Pakistani ships to ensure the safety of its assets, cargo and connected infrastructure, in the public interest and in the interest of the Indian shipping industry.
Both countries have been trading fire at the Line of Control frontier in Kashmir, which acts as a de facto border between India and Pakistan, for the last 10 days as per international media reports.
Since gaining independence from British colonial India in 1947, India and Pakistan have fought two out of three wars over the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir. Both countries claim it in full but administer only parts of it.
The US, China, UK, Saudi Arabia, Turkiye, Iran and several other nations have called on both nuclear-armed neighbors recently to de-escalate tensions and avoid a military standoff.
Pakistan has vowed it would issue a “strong” response if the Indian military attacks. India’s PM Narendra Modi this week gave his country’s military “operational freedom” to respond to the Apr. 22 attack.
‘We don’t care’: Weddings go on in Pakistan’s Kashmir border
- Tensions between India, Pakistan soared after New Delhi accused Islamabad of backing Apr. 22 attack in Kashmir
- Ordinary Kashmiris living on both sides of divided region are often the first victims caught in the conflict’s crossfire
Neelum Valley, Pakistan: Rabia Bibi, a glittering red dupatta pulled over her eyes, wasn’t about to let the threat of war with India stop her wedding in a remote valley in Pakistan-administered Kashmir.
“In our childhood the situation was also like this but we are not afraid. Nor will we be,” the 18-year-old told AFP after being carried in a flower-garlanded “doli” carriage.
“We want peace, so our life does not get affected,” said the bride, radiant in gold bangles, bejeweled bridal headpiece and richly embroidered scarlet robe.
At the ceremony — preceded by the sacrifice of a chicken — groom Chaudhry Junaid, no less resplendent in his elaborate sherwani coat and red-and-gold turban, was also defiant.
“People are anxious and worried, but even so, we haven’t canceled any traditional ceremonies,” the 23-year-old chef said.
Tensions between the nuclear-armed arch-rivals have soared since India accused Pakistan of backing a shooting that killed 26 civilians on the Indian side of disputed Kashmir on April 22.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given his military “full operational freedom” to respond to the attack.
The two sides have traded gunfire for more than a week on the heavily militarised border and Pakistan on Saturday conducted a “training launch” of a missile to prove its “operational readiness.”
Islamabad last week warned they had “credible intelligence” that India was planning imminent strikes.
International pressure has been piled on both New Delhi and Islamabad to de-escalate.
On the Pakistani side, emergency drills have been carried out in playing fields, residents have been told to stock up on food and medicine, and religious schools have shut.
In Indian-run Kashmir, a vast manhunt seeking the gunmen continues across the territory, while those living along the frontier are moving further away — or cleaning out bunkers fearing conflict.
India and Pakistan, which both claim Kashmir in full, have fought several wars over the Himalayan territory since the end of British rule in 1947.
Ordinary Kashmiris living on both sides of the divided Muslim-majority region are often the first victims caught in the crossfire.
In a checkpoint-free corner of the picturesque Neelum Valley, a tourist epicenter that was shut down last week, Indian territory is the other side of the river that winds through the mountainous region.
Residents told AFP they had been urged by the Pakistani authorities to remain vigilant because of the threat of a possible military confrontation.
In another village, mechanical engineer Shoaib Akhtar was also getting married.
“This is the happiest occasion of our lives, and we won’t let anything ruin it,” said Akhtar, the 25-year-old groom surrounded by family.
“Right now, I’m getting married and that’s what matters most. If war comes, we’ll deal with it when it happens,” he added.
“We are happy, and if India has some issues, we don’t care,” Bibi said.
“We stand firm and will fight for our interests and our nation.”
Pakistan says IT systems, Hajj app ensuring ‘complete automation’ of pilgrimage operations
- ’Pak Hajj 2025’ app guides pilgrims about training schedules, vaccinations, flight details
- Launched in November last year, the mobile app is available for Android and iPhone users
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s religion ministry said on Sunday that modern information technology (IT) systems and the government’s official Hajj mobile application are facilitating pilgrims and ensuring “complete automation” of the country’s pilgrimage operations.
Pakistan’s religious affairs ministry launched the “Pak Hajj 2025” mobile application in November to guide and facilitate pilgrims about the 2025 pilgrimage.
Pakistani pilgrims used the app, which is available for both Android and iPhone, last year as well to secure important updates and information about the Hajj pilgrimage.
Speaking to state broadcaster Radio Pakistan, Jamil ur Rehman, assistant director of the religion ministry’s IT cell, spoke about key features of the app.
“He said complete automation has been ensured from application submission to post-Hajj feedback, using modern IT systems and the Pak Hajj App,” the state broadcaster said.
Rehman said the app provides pilgrims with real-time access to their Hajj application status, group details, training schedules and vaccination appointments.
Once training is completed, he said, intending pilgrims’ attendance is marked in the app and their flight details appear as soon as seats are allocated.
Rehman said the app’s feedback feature allows pilgrims to regularly share their experiences and suggestions. He also spoke about a real-time complaint management system available in the app.
“Pilgrims can report any issues, which are immediately assigned to the officer concerned,” Rehman said.
“The app displays the complaint’s status, the responsible officer, and updates until the issue is resolved.”
The religion ministry official hoped baggage mishandling would be significantly reduced through the introduction of QR-coded tags, which are linked to each pilgrim’s profile, including their photograph.
“This allows quick identification and tracking of luggage,” he said.
Pilgrims from across the world are converging in Saudi Arabia to perform Hajj, which begins on the 8th of Dhu Al-Hijjah, the final month of the Islamic calendar.
The first groups of Pakistani pilgrims are scheduled to depart for Makkah on May 7 after completing their eight-day stay in Madinah. Departures will follow the sequence of their arrival in the city, according to the religious affairs ministry.
