ISLAMABAD: Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Monday thanked Saudi Arabia, in its capacity as chair of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Summit, for convening an emergency meeting to discuss the situation in Afghanistan.
An ‘extraordinary’ meeting of the 57-member body was held on August 22 in which the OIC said it expected a comprehensive dialogue and national reconciliation from the authorities in Afghanistan, and urged the Taliban not to allow Afghan soil to shelter “terrorist organizations.”
On Monday, Qureshi spoke with the foreign minister of Saudi Arabia, Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, and thanked him for taking the initiative on Afghanistan.
“The two Foreign Ministers exchanged views on the latest situation in Afghanistan and also discussed a number of issues of bilateral importance,” a statement from the Pakistani foreign office said, adding that Qureshi “expressed the hope that Afghan parties would work for an inclusive political settlement to ensure sustainable peace and security in the country and the region.”
Qureshi also stressed the importance of the international community’s “active and sustained engagement” with the Afghan people.
He updated his Saudi counterpart on Pakistan’s efforts to facilitate the evacuation of personnel and staff of diplomatic missions, international organizations, media and others from Afghanistan.
Taliban insurgents captured Kabul on August 15, after taking over Afghanistan city by city in the last few weeks. They have since announced an “amnesty” across the country and urged women to join its government, but many are skeptical of the promises.
Pakistan thanks Saudi Arabia for helping convene OIC’s emergency meeting on Afghanistan
https://arab.news/jr288
Pakistan thanks Saudi Arabia for helping convene OIC’s emergency meeting on Afghanistan
- An ‘extraordinary’ meeting of the 57-member body was held on August 22
- OIC has urged Taliban not to allow Afghan soil to shelter “terrorist organizations”
‘Terrified’ Sydney man misidentified as Bondi shooter turns to Pakistan consulate for help
- The man says he received death threats after his images were spread widely on social media
- He sought consular help after relatives in home country began receiving alarmed phone calls
SYDNEY: A Sydney man said he had received death threats and was “terrified” to leave his home Monday after his photo was widely shared online as the gunman responsible for the Bondi Beach shooting.
A father and son duo opened fire on a Jewish festival at Australia’s best-known beach on Sunday evening, killing 15 people, including a child, and wounding 42 more.
Authorities have condemned the attack as an act of terrorism, though they have not named the two shooters — one killed at the scene, and the other now in hospital.
However, Australian public broadcaster ABC said the alleged assailant was Naveed Akram from the western Sydney suburb of Bonnyrigg, quoting an anonymous official, and other local media reported that police had raided his home.
Photos of a beaming man in a green Pakistan cricket jersey pinged across social media.
Some of the posts were shared thousands of times, drawing vitriolic comments.
But the photo was taken from the Facebook profile of a different Naveed Akram, who pleaded Monday for people to stop the misinformation in a video published by the Pakistan Consulate of Sydney.
“Per media reports, one of the shooters’ name is Naveed Akram and my name is Naveed Akram as well,” he said in the video.
“That is not me. I have nothing to do with the incident or that person,” he said, condemning the “terrible” Bondi Beach shooting.
“I just want everyone’s help to help me stop this propaganda,” he said, asking for users to report accounts that misused his photo, which he had shared in a 2019 post.
’ LIFE-THREATENING’
The 30-year-old, who lives in a northwestern suburb of Sydney, told AFP he first heard around 9:30 p.m. on Sunday that he had been falsely identified as the shooter.
“I could not even sleep last night,” Akram told AFP by phone, adding he deleted all the “terrible” messages he got.
“I’m terrified. I could not go outside, like it’s a life-threatening issue, so I don’t want to risk anything... my family is worried as well, so it’s quite a hard time for me.”
He asked the Pakistan Consulate to put out the video because relatives in the country’s Punjab province were getting phone calls as well.
“It was destroying my image, my family’s image,” he said.
“People started to call them. They were worried, and they have told the police over there.”
The Pakistan native moved to Australia in 2018 to attend Central Queensland University and later did a masters at Sydney’s Holmes Institute.
Today he runs a car rental business, and he said Australia is “the perfect country.”
“I love this country. I have never had any safety issues here, like everyone is so nice, the people are so nice here,” Akram said.
“It’s only this incident that has caused me this trauma.”
