ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has requested Saudi Arabia to include Chinese vaccines to its list of approved COVID-19 shots for visitors traveling to the kingdom to perform Hajj and Umrah, foreign office spokesperson Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri said on Saturday.
"Pakistan has taken up with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the issue of vaccines which are mandatory for travel to Saudi Arabia for visit, Umrah and Hajj," Chaudhri said in response to media queries on the issue. "We have proposed inclusion of some of the Chinese vaccines used in Pakistan in the list of vaccines approved by the Saudi authorities."
"The Ministry [of Foreign Affairs] is actively pursuing this matter with the Saudi side," he continued.
Saudi Arabia's new vaccine condition has raised questions for Pakistani nationals who intend to visit the kingdom for pilgrimage or other purposes.
According to media reports, people who have not been administered Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Moderna or Johnson and Johnson shots may need to quarantine themselves for a substantial period on arriving in Saudi Arabia.
Pakistan has mostly administered Chinese vaccines to its citizens in a government-run immunization campaign that began last February.
The country only started using AstraZeneca to inoculate its citizens after receiving 1.2 million doses of the vaccine earlier this month under the World Health Organization's COVAX program for equitable distribution of COVID-19 shots among developing nations.
Hundreds of thousands of Pakistanis visit Saudi Arabia annually, mostly for pilgrimage. The kingdom is also home to a large Pakistani diaspora community that makes the largest contribution to its homeland's incoming remittances every year.
Pakistan discusses with Saudi Arabia approval of Chinese vaccines for Hajj pilgrims
https://arab.news/jjc9b
Pakistan discusses with Saudi Arabia approval of Chinese vaccines for Hajj pilgrims
- Media reports suggest people may have to quarantine themselves upon arriving in the kingdom if they have not taken shots developed in the US or Western Europe
- Pakistan has mostly used Chinese vaccines to run its immunization campaign that began last February and has only now started administering AstraZeneca to its citizens
Pakistan opposition rallies in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to demand release of Imran Khan
- PTI-led gathering calls the former PM a national hero and demands the release of all political prisoners
- Government says the opposition failed to draw a large crowd and accuses PTI of damaging its own politics
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s opposition led by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party demanded the release of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan at a rally in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on Sunday, describing him as a national hero who continues to command public support.
The gathering came days after a rare and strongly worded briefing by the military’s media chief, Lt. Gen. Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, who dismissed Khan as “narcissistic” and “mentally ill” on Friday while responding to the former premier’s allegations that Pakistan’s chief of defense forces was responsible for undermining the constitution and rule of law.
He said that Khan was promoting an anti-state narrative which had become a national security threat.
The participants of the rally called for “civilian supremacy” and said elected representatives should be treated with respect.
“We, the people of Pakistan, regard Imran Khan as a national hero and the country’s genuinely elected prime minister, chosen by the public in the February 8, 2024 vote,” said a resolution presented at the rally in Peshawar. “We categorically reject and strongly condemn the notion that he or his colleagues pose any kind of threat to national security.”
“We demand immediate justice for Imran Khan, Bushra Bibi and all political prisoners, and call for their prompt release,” it added, referring to Khan’s wife who is also in prison. “No restrictions should be placed on Imran Khan’s meetings with his family, lawyers or political associates.”
Addressing the gathering, Sohail Afridi, the chief minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, denied his administration was not serious about security issues amid increased militant activity. However, he maintained the people of his province had endured the worst of Pakistan’s conflict with militancy and urged a rethinking of long-running security policies.
The resolution asked the federal government to restore bilateral trade and diplomatic channels with Afghanistan, saying improved cross-border ties were essential for the economic stability of the region.
The trade between the two neighbors has suffered as Pakistan accuses the Taliban administration in Kabul of sheltering and facilitating armed groups that it says launch cross-border attacks to target its civilians and security forces. Afghan officials deny the claim.
The two countries have also had deadly border clashes in recent months that have killed dozens of people on both sides.
Some participants of the rally emphasized the restoration of democratic freedoms, judicial independence and space for political reconciliation, calling them necessary to stabilize the country after years of political confrontation.
Reacting to the opposition rally, Information Minister Attaullah Tarrar said the PTI and its allies could not gather enough people.
“In trying to build an anti-army narrative, they have ruined their own politics,” he said, adding that the rally’s reaction to the military’s media chief’s statement reflected “how deeply it had stung.”
“There was neither any argument nor any real response,” he added, referring to what was said by the participants of the rally.
