KARACHI: Maritime Affairs Minister Ali Haider Zaidi on Wednesday rejected a university report that said soybean dust from a cargo ship was a likely cause of fatal poisoning that has claimed the lives of 14 people in Karachi since Sunday.
”How come the dust from the ship travels over a kilometer and only affects people in a specific area called Jungle Shah and does not affect anyone else?” the minister told Arab News. “I reject the report,” he said, adding that it was “questionable.”
“Why the dust from soybeans did not affect the crew of the ship and 400+ laborers who were busy offloading the cargo,” Zaidi argued and said forensic investigations were underway to determine the cause of the poisoning. “Will not speculate anything before we see all the reports. This is a scientific forensic investigation.”
Provincial authorities and Karachi University experts said on Tuesday said that soybean dust was the likely cause of the toxic gas that killed 14 and left over 350 people sick.
“Preliminary report has been submitted by experts at Khi (Karachi) Uni (university) which suggests that Kiamari incident happened due to over exposure of soybean dust which is known to have also caused similar incidents in other parts of the world,” Murtaza Wahab, spokesperson of the Sindh government tweeted late Tuesday.
The report by the International Center for Chemical and Biological Sciences (ICCBS) said the deaths were likely due to soybean dust exposure.
“The symptoms due to exposure to soybean dust (aeroallergens) may be considered as the possible cause,” the report said.
Earlier, a government source told Arab News that the incident occurred following the unloading of soybeans on Saturday evening at berth 12 of Karachi Port Trust (KPT) after MV Hercules arrived from the US. The unloading created dust which made its way toward Jackson area of Karachi’s Kiamari municipality.
According to sources, MV Hercules was fumigated on Jan. 8 at Cargill grain reserve Los Angeles, US with 56-degree aluminum phosphide.
Repeated exposure to the substance may damage the lungs, kidneys and liver, the sources said, adding that “it is likely that exposure to particles of aluminum phosphide may have created problems for individuals passing by at that time and such unfortunate incident.”
Minister rejects report suggesting soybean dust caused Karachi toxic gas deaths
https://arab.news/8gydg
Minister rejects report suggesting soybean dust caused Karachi toxic gas deaths
- 14 people have died since Sunday night, 350 have been hospitalized
- Karachi University experts earlier identified soybean dust as possible cause of the deaths
Pakistan joins Muslim states in Jeddah as OIC adopts resolutions on Somaliland, Palestine
- Deputy PM Ishaq Dar attends OIC meeting in Jeddah this week to discuss Israel’s recognition of Somaliland
- Muslim countries fear Israel’s move to recognize Somaliland could be part of its plan to resettle Palestinians there
ISLAMABAD: Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar joined other representatives of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) member states in Jeddah this week to discuss the issue of Somaliland, as the global Muslim body adopted resolutions on the breakaway African region and Israel’s military aggression in Palestine.
Dar arrived in Saudi Arabia on Friday to attend the 22nd OIC Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM) held in Jeddah on Jan. 10 to discuss Israel’s move last month to recognize Somaliland, which has drawn sharp criticism from Muslim nations worldwide.
Muslim countries, including Pakistan, fear the move could be part of Tel Aviv’s plan to forcibly relocate Palestinian Muslims to the African region. Several international news outlets last year reported that Israel had contacted Somaliland over the potential resettlement of Palestinians forcibly removed from Gaza.
“Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar has arrived at the OIC Secretariat to participate in the 22nd Extraordinary Session of the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers on Israel’s recognition of Somaliland,” state broadcaster Radio Pakistan reported on Saturday.
In a statement issued by the OIC late Saturday night, Secretary-General Hissein Brahim Taha described Israel’s decision to recognize Somaliland as a “dangerous precedent,” saying it constituted a flagrant violation of international law.
The OIC secretary-general also spoke about the ongoing crisis in Palestine, calling for the complete withdrawal of Israeli troops from Palestinian lands and for the immediate cessation of hostilities.
“The Council of Foreign Ministers concluded its 22nd extraordinary session by adopting two resolutions, the first on developments in the Federal Republic of Somalia and the second on Israel’s continued aggression against the Palestinian people and its plans for annexation and displacement from their land,” the OIC said.
Pakistan also joined the OIC and several other Muslim states on Thursday to condemn Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar’s Jan. 6 visit to Somaliland, calling it a violation of the African nation’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
Pakistan’s foreign office said that while in Jeddah, Dar will also hold bilateral meetings with his counterparts from OIC member states on the sidelines of the conference to discuss cooperation on other regional and international issues.
