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Pakistan issues over 3,000 visas to Indian Sikh pilgrims to attend religious event

Pakistan issues over 3,000 visas to Indian Sikh pilgrims to attend religious event
Sikh pilgrims wait for their bus before leaving for Pakistan to celebrate ‘Baisakhi’, a spring harvest festival, in Amritsar on April 13, 2024. (AFP/File)
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Updated 2 min 23 sec ago
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Pakistan issues over 3,000 visas to Indian Sikh pilgrims to attend religious event

Pakistan issues over 3,000 visas to Indian Sikh pilgrims to attend religious event
  • Islamabad provides visas to Indian pilgrims to attend Sikhism founder Baba Guru Nanak’s birthday celebrations from Nov. 14-23
  • A visa-free corridor in Pakistan’s Punjab provides easy access to Indian pilgrims to Nanak’s final resting place in Narowal
Updated 2 min 23 sec ago
SAIMA SHABBIR
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ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi said on Sunday it has issued over 3,000 visas to Sikh pilgrims in the country to attend the birthday celebrations of Sikhism founder Baba Guru Nanak.
Pakistan last month renewed its agreement with India regarding the Kartarpur Corridor that gives Sikh pilgrims from the neighboring country visa-free access to the final resting place of Nanak, their religion’s founder. 
The visa-free border crossing, from India to Kartarpur in the Narowal district of Pakistan’s Punjab, was inaugurated in November 2019 just ahead of Nanak’s 550th birthday. 
The corridor connects the Sikh shrines of Dera Baba Nanak in India to Gurdwara Darbar Sahib, Nanak’s final resting place, in Kartarpur and is seen as a rare example of cooperation and diplomacy between the two South Asian neighbors.
“The Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi has issued over 3000 visas to Sikh pilgrims from India to participate in the birthday celebrations of Baba Guru Nanak Dev Ji to be held in Pakistan from 14-23 November 2024,” the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi wrote on social media platform X.
It said Pakistan’s Charge d’Affaires to India, Saad Ahmad Warraich, extended his heartfelt felicitations to the Sikh pilgrims and wished them a “fulfilling yatra.”
Much of Sikh heritage is located in Pakistan. When Pakistan was carved out of India at the end of British rule in 1947, Kartarpur ended up on the Pakistani side of the border, while most of the region’s Sikhs remained on the other side.
For over seven decades, the Sikh community had lobbied for easier access to their holiest temple.
Pakistan’s initiative to open the corridor earned widespread appreciation from the international community, including the United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres, who had described it as a “Corridor of Hope.”

Topics: Sikh pilgrims

Pakistan deputy PM in Saudi Arabia to attend OIC meeting on Gaza, Lebanon

Pakistan deputy PM in Saudi Arabia to attend OIC meeting on Gaza, Lebanon
Updated 10 November 2024
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Pakistan deputy PM in Saudi Arabia to attend OIC meeting on Gaza, Lebanon

Pakistan deputy PM in Saudi Arabia to attend OIC meeting on Gaza, Lebanon
  • Ishaq Dar to take part in OIC Council of Foreign Ministers meeting in Saudi Arabia today
  • Pakistan PM to attend Nov. 11 Arab–Islamic summit to show solidarity with Palestine
Updated 10 November 2024
Arab News Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar is in Saudi Arabia to attend the Organization of Islamic Cooperation’s (OIC) Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM) meeting that will discuss Israel’s military campaigns in Gaza and Lebanon, state-run media reported on Sunday. 
Saudi Arabia will host the extraordinary Arab–Islamic summit between the Arab League and the OIC on Nov. 11 to address Israel’s bombardment and ground offensives in Gaza and Lebanon. 
Muslim countries have called on Israel to impose an immediate ceasefire in the Middle East after its military campaigns in Gaza have killed over 43,000 people in the strip and injured thousands more. Its military campaigns in Lebanon and attacks on Iran last month have heightened fears of a wider war in the Middle East.
“Deputy Prime Minister is in Saudi Arabia on an official visit to attend the meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation Council of Foreign Ministers,” state broadcaster Radio Pakistan said.
It said Dar visited the holy city of Madinah where he offered prayers at the Prophet’s Mosque and prayed for the peace, unity and prosperity of the Muslim Ummah.
Pakistan’s foreign office said this week that the CFM will be a preparatory session for the Nov. 11 summit on Monday, which will be attended by Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. 
The Nov. 11 summit will be a follow-up to the Joint Arab-Islamic Extraordinary Summit held in November 2023 in Riyadh, the foreign office said. 
“At the Summit, the prime minister will reiterate Pakistan’s full support to the Palestinian cause,” it said. “He will call for an immediate end to the genocide in Gaza; an urgent and unconditional ceasefire; immediate cessation of the ongoing Israeli adventurism in the region that is endangering the security of the countries in the Middle East.”
On the sidelines of the summit, Sharif is expected to hold bilateral meetings with leaders from other Arab League and OIC Member States.

Topics: Ishaq Dar

Pakistan win toss, put Australia to bat in ODI series decider

Pakistan win toss, put Australia to bat in ODI series decider
Updated 10 November 2024
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Pakistan win toss, put Australia to bat in ODI series decider

Pakistan win toss, put Australia to bat in ODI series decider
  • Australia rest Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Marnus Labuschagne and Steve Smith for today’s match
  • After losing first ODI in Melbourne, Pakistan bounced back strongly in second one at Adelaide to level series 1-1
Updated 10 November 2024
Shahjahan Khurram

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan captain Mohammad Rizwan won the toss and elected to field first against Australia on Sunday as the South Asian country eyes a much-awaited ODI series victory against the world champions today.
Pakistan lost the three-match series opener on Nov. 4 against Australia in a close contest before coming back strongly on Friday to demolish the hosts in Adelaide by nine wickets.
Australia have rested veteran cricketers Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Marnus Labuschagne and Steve Smith for Sunday’s third ODI ahead of Australia’s Test series against India beginning later this month.
“Our team for the series decider” unchanged playing XI,” the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) wrote on social media platform Instagram.
Pakistani pacers Shaheen Shah Afridi and Naseem Shah struck early to deal Australia quick blows, removing the hosts’ opener Jake Fraser-McGurk and Aaron Hardie in the first 10 overs of the match.
Pakistan last won an ODI series against Australia in Australia in 2002. Their win against the Australian cricket team on Friday made it the first time since 2017 that the green shirts had beaten the opposition in an ODI at their backyard.
PLAYING XI:
Australia: 1 Matt Short, 2 Jake Fraser-McGurk, 3 Aaron Hardie, 4 Josh Inglis (capt, wk), 5 Cooper Connolly, 6 Marcus Stoinis, 7 Glenn Maxwell, 8 Sean Abbott, 9 Adam Zampa, 10 Spencer Johnson, 11 Lance Morris
Pakistan: 1 Saim Ayub, 2 Abdullah Shafique, 3 Babar Azam, 4 Mohammad Rizwan (capt, wk), 5 Kamran Ghulam, 6 Salman Agha, 7 Irfan Khan, 8 Shaheen Shah Afridi, 9 Naseem Shah, 10 Haris Rauf, 11 Mohammad Hasnain

Topics: Pakistan vs Australia Pakistan cricket

Pakistan vows to eliminate ‘terrorism’ as railway station attack kills 26 in southwest

Pakistan vows to eliminate ‘terrorism’ as railway station attack kills 26 in southwest
Updated 18 min 55 sec ago
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Pakistan vows to eliminate ‘terrorism’ as railway station attack kills 26 in southwest

Pakistan vows to eliminate ‘terrorism’ as railway station attack kills 26 in southwest
  • Bomb blast at Quetta Railway Station on Saturday killed at least 26, injured 64 in southwestern city
  • Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi calls for unity to battle fresh “wave” of militancy in the country
Updated 18 min 55 sec ago
SAADULLAH AKHTER

QUETTA: Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi this week resolved to eliminate the fresh surge in “terrorism” in the country after a bomb blast claimed by a separatist outfit in the country’s southwest killed at least 26 people on Saturday. 
Officials said at least 26 people were killed and 64 injured on Saturday when a bomb blast struck a railway station in Pakistan’s southwestern city of Quetta. 
The outlawed Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) group, the most prominent of militant groups in Balochistan, took responsibility for the attack, the deadliest since a string of coordinated attacks on Aug. 25-26 in which more than 50 people, civilians and security officials, were killed.
In a statement shared with the media, the BLA said its suicide unit, the Majeed Brigade, had carried out the bombing to target a “Pakistani army unit” returning via train after completing a course at an infantry school. The claim has not yet been confirmed by the Pakistani military.
“We must battle this terrorism together. Apart from the Balochistan government and the federation, the people of Pakistan have to fight against it too,” Naqvi told reporters in Quetta at a news conference with Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfaraz Bugti by his side. 
“And you will see, god willing as the chief minister said, we will eliminate this wave of terrorism.”

Passengers’ belongings are seen scattered on the platform after an explosion at a railway station in Quetta, in Pakistan’s Balochistan province, on November 9, 2024. (AFP)

The Pakistani minister reiterated that the federal government is standing by the Balochistan government and was providing full support to battle militancy in the country. 
Later Pakistan Army Chief General Syed Asim Munir, Naqvi, Bugti and the governor of Balochistan attended funeral prayers for those who were killed in the Quetta Railway Station attack, the military’s media wing said. 
Senior provincial ministers and a large number of military and civilian officials also took part in the funeral prayers at the Quetta Garrison before the deceased were laid to rest, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said. 

People mourn the death of their relatives outside a hospital following a bomb blast at a railway station in Quetta, in Pakistan’s Balochistan province, on November 9, 2024. (AFP)

“COAS [chief of army staff] highlighted that terrorism will never be tolerated and reaffirmed the nation’s resolve and commitment toward eradicating the menace,” the ISPR said. 
“COAS emphasized that this mission will be pursued with full national resolve and collective determination.”
Munir stressed that the fight against “terrorism” requires the support of all Pakistanis, along with the efforts of the military and civil institutions, to secure a peaceful and prosperous future for the country, the ISPR said.

In this handout photo, taken and released by Pakistan’s Inter-Service Public Relations (ISPR), Pakistan’s civil and military leadership attend the funeral prayers of army officers, who were killed during a suicide bombing in Quetta early Saturday, in Quetta on November 10, 2024. (ISPR)

 MILITANCY IN BALOCHISTAN
Balochistan is a resource-rich but impoverished province where separatist militants have been fighting a decades-long insurgency to win secession of the region. Insurgents say they are fighting what they see as the unfair exploitation of the province’s mineral and gas wealth by the federation at the center.

Blast victims get treatment in a hospital following an explosion at a railway station in Quetta, in Pakistan’s Balochistan province, on November 9, 2024. (AFP)

The Pakistani government and military deny they are exploiting Balochistan and have long maintained that neighbors such as India, Afghanistan and Iran foment trouble in the remote province and support and fund the insurgency there to impede its development potential. Balochistan is home to major China-led investment projects such as a strategic port and a gold and copper mine.
The rise of separatist attacks in Balochistan poses a major challenge for the weak coalition government of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, which is battling an economic crisis and political instability as well as a rise in militant violence by both religiously motivated and separatist groups across the country.

People mourn the death of their relatives in a hospital following a bomb blast at a railway station in Quetta, in Pakistan’s Balochistan province, on November 9, 2024. (AFP)

Balochistan is also in the grips of civil rights protests by young ethnic Baloch who are calling for an end to what they describe as a pattern of enforced disappearances and other human rights abuses by security forces, who deny the charge.

Topics: Quetta Blast Quetta Railway Station Balochistan Attacks Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) Pakistan Army

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Saudi embassy inaugurates Kingdom’s pavilion at 10-day cultural show in Pakistani capital

Saudi embassy inaugurates Kingdom’s pavilion at 10-day cultural show in Pakistani capital
Updated 10 November 2024
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Saudi embassy inaugurates Kingdom’s pavilion at 10-day cultural show in Pakistani capital

Saudi embassy inaugurates Kingdom’s pavilion at 10-day cultural show in Pakistani capital
  • Annual Lok Mela festival, which began in Islamabad this week, will continue till Nov. 17
  • More than 500 artisans from across Pakistan are showcasing their skills at the festival
Updated 10 November 2024
Muhammad Ibrahim

ISLAMABAD: Saudi Arabia’s embassy in Pakistan has inaugurated the Kingdom’s pavilion at a 10-day cultural show in the Pakistani capital of Islamabad, which aims to promote national unity, folk heritage, and the culture and traditions of Pakistan’s various provinces and regions.
The annual Lok Mela festival began on November 8 and will continue till November 17, according to the Pakistan National Museum director and focal person of the 2024 fest, Anwaar-ul-Haq.
More than 500 artisans from across Pakistan are showcasing their skills at the festival, while many diplomatic missions, including those of Saudi Arabia, Uzbekistan, Turkiye and Indonesia, are also presenting their cultures and arts at Lok Mela.
“The embassy also inaugurated its pavilion at the fair, which will highlight the special culture of the Kingdom during the fair,” the Saudi embassy said on Twitter.
Pakistan and Saudi Arabia enjoy strong trade, defense and cultural ties. The Kingdom is home to over 2 million Pakistani expatriates and serves as a top source of remittances to the cash-strapped South Asian country.
Saudi Arabia has also often come to Pakistan’s aid in the past, regularly providing it oil on deferred payments and offering direct financial support to help stabilize its economy and shore up forex reserves.

Topics: Pakistan Saudi Ties Lok Mela

UAE consul-general in Karachi releases green turtle hatchlings into Arabian Sea

UAE consul-general in Karachi releases green turtle hatchlings into Arabian Sea
Updated 09 November 2024
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UAE consul-general in Karachi releases green turtle hatchlings into Arabian Sea

UAE consul-general in Karachi releases green turtle hatchlings into Arabian Sea
  • The babies were released during a ceremony to spread awareness about preservation of the endangered species
  • Increasing construction, noise, pollution and exhaust fumes in the port city have greatly threatened green turtles
Updated 09 November 2024
NAIMAT KHAN

KARACHI: United Arab Emirates (UAE) Consul-General Dr. Bakheet Ateeq Al-Remeithi on Friday released green turtle hatchlings into the Arabian Sea off the southern Pakistani port city of Karachi, in a bid to spread awareness about their preservation
The endangered green turtles come to shore to lay eggs on beaches in Karachi and on uninhabited islands in the neighboring Balochistan province, however, increasing construction, noise and pollution and exhaust fumes in the port city have greatly threatened the species.
The provincial wildlife department of the Sindh province, which Karachi is a part of, on Friday arranged a ceremony to release these endangered hatchlings into the Arabian Sea, which was attended by the UAE consul-general and young school students.
“The departure of green turtle babies into the sea was a sight to behold. Pakistan’s beaches are rich in natural beauty, but some steps are necessary,” he told reporters.
“Visitors coming for recreation here must dispose of plastic shopping bags responsibly instead of throwing them away. These shopping bags are destroying the environment of green turtles.”
Female green turtles visit the coastal areas of Karachi for breeding from mid-August till mid-February every year, according to the Sindh wildlife department.
So far, 450 green turtles, up to one or two days old, have been released into the sea this season.

Topics: Pakistan UAE ties UAE consulate karachi

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