PESHAWAR: A group of Pakistani volunteers found the body of a Japanese climber who died while trying to descend from one of the highest mountains in the country, officials said Tuesday.
The body of 64-year-old Hiroshi Onishi was brought down the previous day from the 7,027-meter (23,054 feet) Spantik Peak — also known as Golden Peak — where he died, a local police chief Mohammad Hanif told The Associated Press by phone.
He was the third Japanese climber to die in Pakistan in less than a month.
Onishi was coming down from the mountain with other Japanese climbers after successfully reaching the summit when he slipped and fell into a crevasse and died, police said.
The body of Onishi was being sent to Islamabad by an ambulance, according to Javed Ali Munwa, a local official told the AP. His family is expected to reach Pakistan later this week.
A six-member team of volunteers led by a Pakistani mountaineer Abbas Ali undertook the risky mission to retrieve the body after bad weather prevented helicopters from flying to the Spantik, Munwa said. He added that it took 6 days of arduous work to find and bring the body down.
Hiroshi’s death came after two other Japanese climbers, Atsushi Taguchi and Ryuseki Hiraoka, died while trying to scale the same mountain. They went missing on June 13, and Hiraoka’s body was found two days later after that incident.
His colleague was presumed dead after an unsuccessful weeklong search. Both had fallen into a deep crevasse.
Golden Peak is known for its distinct golden hue at sunrise and sunset, making it a popular destination for mountaineers.
Every year, hundreds of climbers try to scale mountains in northern Pakistan, including K2 and Nanga Parbat, and several die.
Body of missing Japanese climber retrieved from mountain in northern Pakistan
https://arab.news/w3hk4
Body of missing Japanese climber retrieved from mountain in northern Pakistan
- Hiroshi Onishi, 64, died after falling into a crevasse while descending the 7,027-meter Golden Peak
- Six volunteers retrieved his body after bad weather prevented helicopters from flying over the peak
Foreign office says Pakistan invited to US-Iran talks in Türkiye
- The meeting is expected to take place in Istanbul on Friday amid rising regional tensions
- Talks will focus on Iran’s nuclear program as Tehran resists limits on missile capabilities
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has received an invitation to join talks between the United States and Iran expected to take place in Türkiye this week to discuss Tehran’s nuclear program, the foreign office said on Tuesday, as regional states push to revive diplomacy amid heightened tensions.
The planned meeting in Istanbul on Friday follows months of escalating rhetoric between Washington and Tehran, with US President Donald Trump warning of consequences if negotiations fail and Iran insisting its defensive capabilities are not negotiable.
Regional powers have urged restraint, warning the Middle East cannot afford another conflict.
“Yes, we have received the invitation for talks in Istanbul,” foreign office spokesperson Tahir Andrabi told Arab News.
According to a senior Pakistani official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar is expected to attend the talks on Pakistan’s behalf, though no formal announcement has yet been made.
Iranian and US officials have said the talks will focus on Iran’s nuclear program, which Tehran maintains is for peaceful purposes.
Iranian officials have also expressed concern that Washington may seek to expand the scope of negotiations to include Iran’s ballistic missile program, which Tehran considers a core element of its defense and which was used during last year’s 12-day Iran-Israel war.
Trump has said the United States is seeking nuclear concessions from Iran and has warned that “bad things” could happen if no agreement is reached, while stopping short of spelling out potential military action.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said this week he had instructed the foreign minister to pursue “fair and equitable negotiations,” provided the talks take place in an environment free of threats.
International media have reported that foreign ministers or senior representatives from several regional countries, including Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Egypt, Oman and the United Arab Emirates, have also been invited to participate in the Istanbul talks, alongside Pakistan.
