ISLAMABAD: Dismissing reports that nationals residing in Saudi Arabia were facing problems in the country, Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said on Friday that the reports were untrue.
In a written reply to questions about Pakistani expats in the Kingdom, Qureshi told the National Assembly: “Pakistanis employed in the Kingdom on proper work visas do not face problems pertaining to their work permits (Iqamas), outstanding dues etc,” adding that the Saudi was home to around 2.6 million Pakistani expats.
Qureshi added that only those Pakistanis who had overstayed, were involved in illegal activities or had traveled to GCC countries on a free visa faced problems. “In some cases, Pakistanis going on ‘Hajj and Umrah Visas’ to Saudi Arabia overstay and thus become liable for deportation by the Saudi authorities,” he said.
Earlier, Moulana Abdul Akbar Chitrali, a lawmaker from the religious political alliance Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal, had asked the government whether any Pakistani workers were stranded in Saudi Arabia due to a nonpayment of salaries by their employers.
Qureshi explained to the house that Saudi Arabia was an oil-based economy and more than 70 percent of its budget was financed by the sector. Due to a slump in oil prices in the past, some projects were put on hold by the Saudi government.
He narrated the example of a construction company which had incurred a huge loss after several other companies defaulted due to an economic slump and failed to pay the wages to expatriates from various nationalities, which included 9,360 Pakistanis.
“The workers were stuck with expired visas and without salaries. The government of Pakistan, through our missions, facilitated the final exit and free tickets of 4,810 workers,” he said.
“We coordinated with different companies to relocate the workers and more than 4,548 were transferred to new employers within the Kingdom.”
Prime Minister Imran Khan visited Saudi Arabia last week, where he participated in the Future Investment Initiative Conference. Foreign Minister Qureshi said that during the meeting with Khan, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman “agreed to bring visa fee for Pakistani workers at par with the visa fee charged from Indian workers i.e. SR305.”
Qureshi added that there are around 3,000 Pakistani nationals detained in Saudi prisons and a majority of those are “unfortunately detained on drug-related charges.”
Overseas Pakistanis not facing issues in Saudi Arabia – Qureshi
Overseas Pakistanis not facing issues in Saudi Arabia – Qureshi
- Foreign minister rubbishes reports that several are stranded in the country
- Says only those who had overstayed or indulged in illegal activities held back
Pakistan says nine militants killed in security operations in northwest
- The intelligence-based operations were conducted in Tank and Lakki Marwat districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
- Military says the counterterrorism campaign is being pursued under the framework of the National Action Plan
PESHAWAR: Security forces in Pakistan said on Saturday they killed nine militants belonging to the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) in two intelligence-based operations in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
Pakistan refers to fighters of the TTP, an umbrella group of various armed factions, as “khwarij,” a term from early Islamic history used to describe an extremist sect that rebelled against authority. The military also alleges the group receives arms and funding from the Indian government, a charge New Delhi denies.
The two operations were carried out on Dec. 5 in the volatile districts of Tank and Lakki Marwat, according to a statement from the military’s media wing, Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).
“On reported presence of khwarij, an intelligence-based operation was conducted by the Security Forces in Tank District,” the statement said. “During the conduct of operation, own troops effectively engaged the khwarij location and after an intense fire exchange, seven khwarij were sent to hell.”
“Another intelligence-based operation was conducted in Lakki Marwat District,” it added. “In ensuing fire exchange, two more khwarij were effectively neutralized by the security forces.”
ISPR said weapons and ammunition were recovered from the militants, whom it described as “Indian sponsored” and accused of involvement in attacks on security personnel, law enforcement agencies and civilians.
It said follow-up “sanitization operations” were under way as part of the country’s counterterrorism campaign under Azm-e-Istehkam, approved by the Federal Apex Committee of the National Action Plan, which aims to eliminate what it called foreign-supported militant threats in the country.
