ISLAMABAD: The remains of nine Pakistanis killed by unidentified gunmen in a border area of Iran last week have been airlifted to Pakistan, the foreign office said on Wednesday.
The Pakistanis were laborers who lived at an auto repair shop where they worked. No group has claimed responsibility for the killings, which occurred in Saravan in Iran’s Sistan-Baluchestan province on Saturday, ahead of a planned visit this Monday to Pakistan by Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian.
Iran and Pakistan have been trying to mend ties since both countries traded missile strikes aimed at what they said were militant targets inside each other’s territory earlier this month.
“The mortal remains of nine Pakistani nationals, who were killed in a terrorist attack in Sistan o Baluchestan Province of Iran on 27 January 2024, are being airlifted today from Taftan border to [Pakistani city of ] Multan,” the foreign ministry’s spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said in a statement. “Our thoughts and prayers are with their loved ones.”
During his visit to Pakistan on Monday, Iranian FM Abdollahian said militants harboring along a shared border with Pakistan were supported by “third countries,” but would be defeated through “joint cooperation.”
Pakistan has long accused rivals and neighboring Afghanistan and India of stoking unrest in its southwestern Balochistan province that borders Iran. Both deny the charge. Islamabad and Tehran have also frequently exchanged accusations of turning a blind eye to militants harboring along their shared border.
Pakistan says remains of nine workers killed in Iran last week being brought home
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Pakistan says remains of nine workers killed in Iran last week being brought home
- Unidentified gunmen killed nine Pakistani workers on Jan. 27 in Iran’s southeastern border area of Saravan
- Bodies of deceased Pakistani workers being airlifted from Taftan border to Multan, foreign office says
Pakistan, Jordan discuss defense cooperation amid flurry of high-level contacts
- Field Marshal Asim Munir hosted Maj Gen Yousef Ahmed A. Al Huneiti of Jordan in Rawalpindi
- Munir visited Amman in October, followed by King Abdullah II’s trip to Pakistan the next month
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir met the chairman of Jordan’s Joint Chiefs of Staff on Thursday to discuss defense and military cooperation, the Pakistani military said in a statement, amid a recent uptick in high-level engagement between the two countries.
Major General Yousef Ahmed A. Al Huneiti, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the Jordan Armed Forces, called on Munir at Pakistan’s military headquarters in Rawalpindi, according to a statement issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).
“During the meeting, both sides discussed matters of mutual interest, regional security dynamics, and avenues for enhanced bilateral defense and military cooperation,” ISPR said.
“Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to strengthening defense ties with Jordan and emphasized the importance of collaborative efforts to address evolving security challenges,” it added.
The meeting follows a series of senior-level interactions between the two countries this year. Munir paid an official visit to Jordan in October, while Jordan’s military leadership has also engaged with Pakistan’s top brass in recent months.
In November, Jordan’s King Abdullah II visited Pakistan for talks with the country’s civilian and military leadership.
Pakistan and Jordan have long maintained cordial relations, including defense cooperation and military training links, though senior-level exchanges have been relatively infrequent.
Both countries were also among eight Muslim-majority states whose top leaders participated in discussions with United States President Donald Trump in September on proposals aimed at ending the war in Gaza and issued joint statements with other countries over the situation in West Asia in recent months.
ISPR said the meeting concluded with a shared resolve to further deepen military-to-military cooperation between Pakistan and Jordan.
