ISLAMABAD: The government on Saturday announced it was suspending all international flights to Pakistan for two weeks, hoping to contain coronavirus infections as the country’s confirmed COVID-19 cases reached at least 733 with three fatalities.
The suspension of flights will become effective from 8pm on Saturday and last till the evening of April 4, disrupting the plans of about 200,000 passengers in different countries who were scheduled to land in Pakistan during this period.
“This is a difficult decision for the government … but we can’t take any risk and want to ensure the safety of the public,” Moeed Yusuf, Special Assistant to Prime Minister Imran Khan on National Security, said while addressing a news conference along with Dr. Zafar Mirza and chairman National Disaster Management Authority Lt. Gen. Muhammad Afzal in Islamabad.
The flight suspension will not be applicable to cargo planes and diplomatic missions, Yusuf said, adding that Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) will also be allowed to bring its planes back.
Pakistan has been struggling to fight the coronavirus pandemic, which has claimed almost 12,000 lives worldwide as of Saturday and crippled health care services around the globe, by introducing a raft of precautionary measures. These include the establishment of large quarantine centers, screening domestic and international passengers and testing persons with virus symptoms.
Earlier on Tuesday, Islamabad made it mandatory for all passengers flying to Pakistan to produce a copy of coronavirus test results obtained 24 hours before boarding. The measure was heavily criticized as unpragmatic, but came into effect on Saturday.
“This COVID-19 certification for international passengers will be abolished when we resume our flight operation,” Yusuf said, adding the international flight suspension was “temporary.”
Yusuf also clarified the government was not locking down any city, amid rumors widely circulating on social media.
“The news [regarding the possible lockdown of cities] circulating on the social media is fake,” he said. “Please pay heed to information released through official channels only.”
However, Pakistan’s most populous province Punjab, announced on Saturday it would be shutting down its shopping malls, markets and public places until at least Tuesday morning. This follows a partial closure in southern Sindh province earlier in the week, as the number of confirmed cases there surged.
Meanwhile, the NDMA chairman said the government was building special rooms in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan provinces to set up quarantine centers.
“These will be special rooms with attached bathrooms,” he said, adding that the government was also procuring test kits, personal protective equipment (PPE) and ventilators to deal with the situation.
Earlier, the country’s railways minister, Shaikh Rashid Ahmed, said the government was shutting operations of 46 trains till the 15th of Ramadan.
“Around 12 trains will stop running from tomorrow while another 34 trains will stop operating from midnight March 24,” he said while addressing a press conference in Islamabad on Saturday.
Pakistan suspends all international flights for two weeks
https://arab.news/rmfcn
Pakistan suspends all international flights for two weeks
- Flight suspension is likely to affect about 200,000 passengers until April 4
- The news about possible lockdown of cities is fake, says Moeed Yusuf
Pakistani minister urges universal rights, dialogue at UN civilizations forum in Riyadh
- Musadik Malik warns selective application of human rights and weakening multilateralism risk deepening global divisions
- The minister also mentions water rights and urges equitable sharing by upper riparian states to support regional stability
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s climate change minister said principles of justice and human rights must be applied universally, according to an official statement released on Monday, warning against selective enforcement as he addressed a United Nations forum in Saudi Arabia focused on dialogue among civilizations.
The remarks came at the 11th Global Forum of the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC), held in Riyadh to mark the body’s 20th anniversary. The forum brings together political leaders, policymakers, and civil society groups to promote dialogue, mutual understanding, and cooperation across cultures and religions.
Its latest edition comes at a time of growing geopolitical fragmentation and conflict.
“I am firmly committed to women’s rights, minority rights, environmental rights, and children’s rights,” Musadik Malik said while addressing the gathering. “These rights are fundamental and non-negotiable.”
He said the global order was increasingly marked by weakening multilateralism, rising conflicts, and declining international funding for development and environmental priorities, cautioning that unilateral actions were replacing collective approaches with consequences for global peace and justice.
Malik questioned what he described as the selective application of human rights principles, drawing attention to the situations in Palestine and Kashmir, and said the rights of people in those regions must be recognized and protected in line with international norms.
The minister also highlighted water rights as a growing source of regional tension, emphasizing the responsibility of upper riparian states to ensure equitable and just sharing of water resources with downstream countries to support stability and sustainable development.
His statement comes months after India said unilaterally it was holding the Indus Waters Treaty “in abeyance,” a move described as illegal by the administration in Islamabad and as “an act of war.”
The 1960 agreement between India and Pakistan, brokered by the World Bank, divides the rivers of the Indus basin between the two countries and sets rules for how they can use and manage shared water resources to avoid conflict.
Malik said the UNAOC’s 20th anniversary was a timely reminder of the need to recommit to dialogue, peace, and mutual respect in an increasingly divided world.
