ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has decided to resume all international flights from August 9 midnight, said an official document issued by the country’s Civil Aviation Authority on Friday.
The country already restored domestic flights at all airports, with a few exceptions, on Thursday, reflecting its intent to return to the pre-coronavirus aviation operations.
In March, Pakistan shut all its schools and land borders and decided to close domestic and international flights and discourage large gatherings to try to halt the spread of the coronavirus.
“Government of Pakistan is pleased to allow all types of international passenger operations to/from all airports as available pre-COVID-19 i.e. March 17, 2020,” said the NOTAM.
“International scheduled flight operations to/from Pakistan will revert to authorizations as per Summer-20 scheduling season,” it added. “However, international flight operations shall be conducted in accordance with established guidelines and applicable SOPs. International cargo and special flight operations may also be conducted to/from Pakistan as per applicable SOPs.”
On Thursday, Planning Minister Asad Umar announced that virtually all sectors in Pakistan shut down to prevent the spread of the coronavirus would be reopened next week, other than schools and marriage halls which would open in September.
With infections and deaths down nearly 80 percent since their peak as per government records, the National Coordination Committee (NCC), the apex body set up to oversee coronavirus mitigation efforts, met on Thursday to decide on measures to help the country return to normalcy.
Umar announced that tourist destinations would open from August 8, restaurants, theaters and beauty salons from August 10 and schools and marriage halls from September 15. Shops would go back to pre-coronavirus timings from August 10.
Pakistan to resume international flight operations from Sunday
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Pakistan to resume international flight operations from Sunday
- The country has already restored most of its domestic flights from today
- International cargo, special flight operations also available at all airports subject to compliance with SOPs
Pakistan vaccinates over 13.6 million children on first day of nationwide anti-polio campaign
- Pakistan launched week-long nationwide campaign to vaccinate over 45 million children on Monday
- Health workers vaccinate over 7 million children in Punjab, three million in Sindh and 2.2 million in KP provinces
ISLAMABAD: Pakistani health workers vaccinated over13.6 million children on the first day of the nationwide anti-polio campaign, the National Emergency Operations (NEOC) said in a statement on Tuesday.
Pakistan launched the Feb. 2-8 campaign, the first of this year, in the country’s Sindh, Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan, Azad Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan (KP) areas on Monday. The campaign will target over 45 million children in the territories.
“Over 13.6 million children vaccinated nationwide on the first day of the campaign,” the NEOC said in a statement, adding that over 7.3 million children were vaccinated in the eastern Punjab province.
Over 3 million children were vaccinated in Sindh, 2.275 million in KP, 559,000 in the southwestern Balochistan province, 82,000 in GB and 233,000 in Azad Kashmir.
“Polio is an incurable disease that can cause lifelong disability in children,” the NEOC said. “Parents urged to open their doors to polio workers and ensure their children receive polio drops.”
Eliminating poliovirus remains a critical health initiative of Pakistan, which along with Afghanistan, is one of only two countries worldwide where the virus is endemic. Pakistan reported 31 cases of polio in 2025, which authorities say is a significant decline from the alarming 74 cases of the disease it reported in 2024.
Polio workers and their security escorts have repeatedly been targeted in militant attacks, particularly in parts of Pakistan’s KP and Balochistan provinces, complicating efforts to vaccinate children in remote areas.
A gun attack targeting a polio vaccination team in the northwestern Bajaur district in December 2025 left one police constable and a civilian dead.
Natural disasters, such as floods, have also disrupted vaccination campaigns in recent years.
