ISLAMABAD: A Pakistani Christian woman who was exonerated in a blasphemy case after spending eight years on death row and set free by the Supreme Court on Tuesday is all set to fly to Canada to join her two daughters there, her lawyer said on Wednesday.
The apex court upheld the October acquittal of Aasia Bibi, 54, in a landmark blasphemy case, clearing the final legal obstacle in her path to freedom and allowing her to seek asylum in a country of her choice.
“She will fly to Canada very soon to join her daughters who are already there. Yes, Canada has offered them the asylum,” Saiful Malook, who pleaded Bibi’s case in the court, told Arab News on Wednesday.
Bibi’s two daughters were secretly flown out to Canada earlier this month after accepting Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's offer for asylum.
In November last year, Trudeau said that his government was engaging with Pakistani authorities over Bibi's case. “We are in discussions with the Pakistani government,” he said.
“There is a delicate domestic context that we respect which is why I don’t want to say any more about that, but I will remind people that Canada is a welcoming country,” Trudeau said.
Shortly after the dismissal of a review petition -- which had sought that a death sentence awarded by a lower court to Bibi be upheld -- dozens of activists of the ultra-Islamist Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) party held protests in different cities of the country, including Karachi, Hyderabad, and Lahore.
They demanded that the government must “hang Aasia Bibi for defaming Prophet Muhammad [PBUH].” The law enforcement agencies, however, moved quickly and arrested scores of protesters to restore law and order.
Aasia Bibi to join her daughters in Canada “very soon” – lawyer
Aasia Bibi to join her daughters in Canada “very soon” – lawyer
- Duo had flown to Ottawa earlier this month
- Country has offered asylum to Pakistani Christian woman and her family
Pakistan Navy seizes $3 million of narcotics in Arabian Sea under regional security patrol
- Official statement says the haul was made during an anti-narcotics operation conducted by PNS Yamama
- Seizure comes after a record haul of nearly $972 million was reported in the North Arabian Sea in October
KARACHI: Pakistan Navy said on Sunday a patrol vessel operating in the Arabian Sea had seized 1,500 kg of narcotics, the latest interdiction under a regional maritime security deployment aimed at curbing illicit activity along key shipping routes.
The operation took place under the Regional Maritime Security Patrol (RMSP), a Pakistan-led initiative that deploys naval assets across the Arabian Sea and adjoining waters to deter smuggling, piracy and other non-traditional security threats.
The framework combines independent patrols with coordination involving regional and international partners.
“Pakistan Navy Ship Yamama, while deployed on Regional Maritime Security Patrol in the Arabian Sea, successfully conducted an anti-narcotics operation, leading to the seizure of 1,500 kilograms of hashish valued at approximately 3 million US dollars,” the Navy said.
The interdiction, it added, underscored the force’s “unwavering commitment to combating illicit activities and ensuring security in the maritime domain.”
Pakistan Navy said it routinely undertakes RMSP missions to safeguard national maritime interests through “robust vigilance and effective presence at sea,” and continues to play a proactive role in collaborative maritime-security efforts with other regional navies.
The seizure comes amid heightened counter-narcotics activity at sea.
In October, a Pakistani vessel seized a haul worth nearly $972 million in what authorities described as one of the largest drug seizures ever reported in the North Arabian Sea.
Last month, Pakistan Navy units operating under a Saudi Arabia-led multinational task force seized about 2,000 kg of methamphetamine, valued at roughly $130 million, highlighting the role of regional cooperation in disrupting trafficking networks.
