ISLAMABAD: An Italian diplomat and two mountaineering workers in Pakistan said on Monday that an avalanche had stranded a group of four Italian and three Pakistani climbers on a mountain in the country’s north.
A tour operator, Ashraf Aman, who arranged the expedition, said the avalanche hit the seven mountaineers when they were descending.
“I cannot comment on their condition at this stage, but a helicopter is being arranged. Volunteers from the area are being dispatched there,” he said, offering no further details.
The four Italian climbers involved are Tarcisio Bellò, who led the expedition, Luca Morellato, David Bergamin and Tino Toldo. According to the Russian website Mountain.ru, which has been following the expedition, the four Italians have been injured.
Ambassador Stefano Pontecorvo confirmed Monday’s incident happened in the northern district of Ghizar, but he also gave no further details.
According to Karrar Haidri, secretary of the Pakistan Alpine Club, authorities were trying to send a helicopter to Ghizar on Tuesday in an effort to rescue all the stranded climbers and bring them safely back to the base camp.
He said it was difficult to say what the condition of the climbers was.
“A rescue mission will begin tomorrow (Tuesday) and we are praying for the safety of stranded mountaineers,” he told The Associated Press.
Mountaineers from across the world travel to Pakistan every year to try scaling its high northern mountain ranges. Harsh weather and conditions often prove a test for the most experienced of climbers.
Earlier this year, two European climbers — an Italian Daniele Nardi and Briton Tom Ballard — were killed on the Pakistani mountain Nanga Parbat, which is the world’s ninth-tallest with a peak of 8,126 meters (26,660 feet), during bad winter weather.
Nardi, from near Rome, had attempted to scale Nanga Parbat in winter several times. Ballard’s disappearance hit his homeland particularly hard as he is the son of Alison Hargreaves, the first woman to scale Mount Everest alone.
She died at age 33 descending the summit of K2.
Avalanche strands 4 Italian, 3 local climbers in Pakistan
Avalanche strands 4 Italian, 3 local climbers in Pakistan
- The incident happened in the northern district of Ghizar
- Two European climbers lost their lives while trying to scale Nanga Parbat earlier this year
Pakistan praises Qatar’s ‘positive role’ on National Day, seeks deeper trade and investment ties
- Zardari says relations with Qatar are rooted in shared values, mutual respect and people-to-people contacts
- He says Pakistan sees energy, agriculture and technology as priority areas for expanding bilateral cooperation
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Thursday praised Qatar’s “positive role” at the regional and international level and called for enhanced trade and investment cooperation as the Gulf state marked its National Day, according to a statement from the presidency.
Pakistan and Qatar maintain close diplomatic, economic and security ties, underpinned by energy cooperation, labor links and growing defense engagement. Qatar hosts a large Pakistani expatriate workforce, employed mainly in construction, services, transport and security, making remittances a key pillar of the relationship.
Security ties have also expanded in recent years, with Pakistan providing military training and advisory support to Qatari forces. The two countries cooperated on security planning and personnel deployment for the 2022 FIFA World Cup hosted by Doha.
Qatar has also played a diplomatic role in the region, most recently mediating between Pakistan and Afghanistan following fierce border clashes earlier this year in which dozens of people were killed on both sides.
“Qatar’s positive role at the regional and international level is commendable,” President Asif Ali Zardari said in a message issued on the occasion of the Arab country’s National Day.
“Pakistan is keen to further expand cooperation with Qatar in trade and investment,” he added.
In his message, Zardari extended congratulations to Qatar’s Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and conveyed best wishes to the Qatari people, describing relations between the two countries as close, enduring and rooted in shared values and mutual respect.
He said Qatar had achieved significant development and progress under the Amir’s leadership and reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to strengthening bilateral ties.
Zardari said Pakistan sought to deepen partnerships with Qatar in sectors including energy, agriculture and technology, while highlighting manpower cooperation and people-to-people contacts as the foundation of the relationship.
The president also expressed Islamabad’s resolve to further strengthen friendship and cooperation between the two countries, the statement said.
