ISLAMABAD: The Pakistani embassy in Kazakhstan has established “help desks” for Pakistanis in the Kazakh cities of Nursultan and Almaty to facilitate them during the worst unrest in the Central Asian country, the Pakistani foreign office said on Saturday.
Kazakhstan authorities say security forces killed 26 demonstrators in this week’s unrest and that 18 law-enforcement officers died. More than 4,400 people have been arrested, the interior ministry said.
The protests in the Central Asian nation are the most widespread since its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991.
The unrest began in the country’s far west as protests against a sharp rise in prices for liquefied petroleum gas that is widely used as vehicle fuel.
In view of the turmoil in the Central Asian country, the Pakistani ministry of foreign affairs has asked Pakistani nationals to avoid unnecessary movement.
“All Pakistanis living in Kazakhstan have been advised to restrict unnecessary movement and remain in close contact with the embassy in case of any emergency,” it said in a statement.
“The embassy has reported that all Pakistanis are safe.”
The ministry said it had been in close contact with the Pakistani embassy in order to provide all-possible assistance to the Pakistani community residing in the Central Asian country.
Below are the contact details of the help desks:
Nursultan
Mr. Altaf Hussain (Deputy Head of Mission, Nursultan)
Phone No: +77753712102
Almaty
Mr. Muhammad Farooque (Trade & Investment Counsellor, Almaty)
Phone No: +77004488032
Mr. Mohsin Rashid (Consular Attaché)
Phone No: +77026572163
