ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Religious Affairs Chaudhry Salik Hussain shared a startling figure on Wednesday while discussing the number of Pakistanis who went to Iraq for religious tourism but decided not to return, saying there were 50,000 such cases without specifying the period during which these people went missing occurred.
Every year, thousands of Pakistani pilgrims travel to Iran, Iraq and Syria to visit religious shrines in these countries.
During the briefing to the Senate Standing Committee on Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony, the minister said the government had formulated a policy to streamline such visits to the Middle Eastern states, adding it was awaiting the approval of the federal cabinet.
A statement released after the committee’s proceedings reflected that participants discussed the issue at length.
“Chaudhry Salik Hussain revealed during the meeting that nearly 50,000 Pakistanis had gone missing in Iraq,” the statement said.
It informed the government wanted to promote the group system for pilgrims visiting the aforementioned countries, adding that Iraq had its own monitoring system for pilgrims on its borders.
The meeting also reviewed the issues faced by pilgrims at the Taftan border between Pakistan and Iran, which they mostly cross to visit the shrines in the three Middle Eastern states.
Meanwhile, Senator Raja Nisar Abbas, who is part of the Senate committee, said a majority of people who go missing in other countries travel there illegally.
He maintained that those who go for pilgrimage to these countries have their travel documents collected at the border.
He also highlighted the issues faced by pilgrims at the Taftan border, pointing out that they had to wait for several days in the absence of basic facilities.
Abbas proposed that a complaint cell be established for these people, similar to the one that helps Hajj pilgrims.
Religious affairs minister reports 50,000 Pakistanis missing in Iraq during religious tourism
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Religious affairs minister reports 50,000 Pakistanis missing in Iraq during religious tourism
- Chaudhry Salik Hussain shares the startling figure while briefing the Senate Standing Committee on Religious Affairs
- He says his ministry has formulated a new policy to address the issue, which is awaiting the federal cabinet’s approval
Death toll in Pakistan wedding suicide blast rises to six
- Attack targeted members of local peace committee in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Dera Ismail Khan
- Peace committees are community-based groups that report militant activity to security forces
PESHAWAR: The death toll from a suicide bombing at a wedding ceremony in northwestern Pakistan rose to six, police said on Saturday, after funeral prayers were held for those killed in the attack a day earlier.
The bomber detonated explosives during a wedding gathering in the Dera Ismail Khan district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, injuring more than a dozen, some of them critically.
“The death toll has surged to six,” said Nawab Khan, Superintendent of Police for Saddar Dera Ismail Khan. “Police have completed the formalities and registered the case against unidentified attackers.”
“It was a suicide attack and the Counter Terrorism Department will further investigate the case,” he continued, adding that security had been stepped up across the district to prevent further incidents.
No militant group has claimed responsibility for the blast so far.
Khan cautioned against speculation, citing ongoing militancy in the area, and said the investigation was being treated with “utmost seriousness.”
The explosion targeted the home of a member of a local peace committee, which is part of community-based groups that cooperate with security forces and whose members have frequently been targeted by militants in the past.
Some media reports also cited a death toll of seven, quoting police authorities.
Emergency officials said several of the wounded were taken to hospital soon after the blast.
Militant attacks have intensified in parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa since the Taliban returned to power in neighboring Afghanistan in 2021, with Islamabad accusing Afghan authorities of “facilitating” cross-border assaults, a charge Kabul denies.
