KARACHI: The German consulate in southern Pakistani city of Karachi has suspended its services for people who are not European Union (EU) citizens, the consulate said on Monday, citing “security concerns.”
The development comes amid a renewed wave of militant violence in the South Asian country, including attacks on foreign nationals and police officials in Karachi.
Unidentified militants on Sunday shot dead a senior counter-terrorism official, while five Japanese workers narrowly escaped a suicide attack in the city in April. No group claimed responsibility for attacks.
“Due to imminent security concerns the Consulate of the Federal Republic of Germany will remain closed for services of non-EU-citizens until further notice,” the German consulate said in a statement. “Already issued visa for non-EU-citizens can be picked up.”
A spokesperson for the German consulate offered no further details when asked about the nature of the security concerns.
Pakistan has primarily witnessed an uptick in militant attacks in its two western provinces, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, since the Pakistani Taliban called off their fragile truce with the government in November 2022.
Insurgents have also targeted Chinese working in Pakistan on projects relating to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) in recent months. In March, five Chinese nationals and their Pakistani driver were killed when a suicide bomber in northwest Pakistan rammed his explosive-laden car into a vehicle when they were heading to the Dasu Dam, the biggest hydropower project in Pakistan, where they worked.
It followed a Mar. 20 attack on a strategic port used by China in the southwestern province of Balochistan, where Beijing has poured billions of dollars into infrastructure projects, and a Mar. 25 assault on a naval air base, also in the southwest. Both attacks were claimed by the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), the most prominent of several separatist groups in Balochistan.
Islamabad has blamed the surge in violence on militants operating out of neighboring Afghanistan. Kabul denies the allegation and says rising violence in Pakistan is a domestic issue of Islamabad.
German consulate in Karachi suspends services for non-EU citizens due to ‘security concerns’
https://arab.news/v5j4k
German consulate in Karachi suspends services for non-EU citizens due to ‘security concerns’
- The development comes amid renewed wave of violence in Pakistan, including attacks on foreigners and police in Karachi
- Militants have also recently targeted Chinese working in Pakistan on projects relating to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor
Pakistan’s Balochistan establishes threat assessment center amid surge in militant attacks
- Provincial Intelligence Fusion and Threat Assessment Center brings police, CTD, intelligence agencies together on one platform, says official
- Says center helps disrupt terror financing, narcotics trafficking, organized crime and enables action against unregulated communication networks
ISLAMABAD: The government in Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province has established a state-of-the-art threat assessment center to strengthen early warning and prevention against “terrorism” incidents, a senior official said on Monday amid a surge in militant attacks recently.
Balochistan Additional Chief Secretary Hamza Shafqaat wrote on social media platform X that the Provincial Intelligence Fusion and Threat Assessment Center (PIFTAC Balochistan) brings police, the counter-terrorism department (CTD), intelligence agencies and civil administration together on one platform for real-time information sharing and joint analysis.
“PIFTAC strengthens early warning and prevention against terrorism, helps disrupt terror financing, narcotics trafficking, and organized crime, and enables coordinated action against illegal spectrum and unregulated communication networks,” he wrote.
“Information that was once scattered is now shared and acted upon in time, allowing the state to move from reacting after incidents to preventing them before they occur.”
https://x.com/beyondfiles/status/2010444397163532547
The development takes place amid a steep rise in combat-related deaths in Pakistan during 2025. According to statistics released by the Pakistan Institute for Conflict and Security Studies (PICSS) last month, combat-related deaths in 2025 rose 73 percent to 3,387.
These deaths included 2,115 militants, 664 security forces personnel, 580 civilians and 28 members of pro-government peace committees, the local think tank said.
Pakistan military spokesperson Lt. Gen. Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry last week highlighted Pakistan’s counter-terrorism efforts in 2025, saying that security forces had conducted 75,175 intelligence-based operations (IBOs) and killed 2,597 militants last year. He also said Pakistan reported 5,397 “terrorism incidents” last year.
Pakistan frequently accuses Afghanistan of allowing militant groups, including the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and the separatist Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) to operate from its soil, charges Kabul has repeatedly denied.
Islamabad also accuses India of backing these militant groups against Pakistan. New Delhi rejects the allegations.
