ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s national air carrier has resumed two-way direct flights from Faisalabad in the country’s eastern Punjab province to Saudi Arabia’s port city of Jeddah, an official statement said on Friday, with an aim to facilitate Umrah pilgrims.
The Saudi destinations of Jeddah and Madinah have always been lucrative for Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), a loss-making state-owned entity that the government is trying to privatize.
These routes are particularly profitable due to the high volume of passengers traveling for religious purposes, such as Umrah and Hajj pilgrimages.
Jeddah is located close to Makkah, and the consistent demand for flights to the two holy cities of Islam ensures a steady stream of revenue for the airline, making them some of the most critical routes in terms of profitability and passenger load.
“PIA started two-way flights from Faisalabad to Jeddah,” the airline announced in a statement. “With the resumption of these flights, special facilities will be available, especially to Umrah pilgrims.”
PIA reduced its flight operations during the COVID-19 pandemic. It will operate these flights between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia twice a week.
The initiative was welcomed by the business community in Faisalabad, a major textile hub of the country.
PIA’s Chief Commercial Officer Nausherwan Adil bid goodbye to at least 170 Umrah pilgrims as the first flight PK763 left Faisalabad Airport for Saudi Arabia.
Adil said PIA always tried to provide direct travel facilities to its passengers, adding the resumption of flights would benefit overseas Pakistanis residing in the kingdom for employment purposes.
Pakistan’s national air carrier resumes Faisalabad-Jeddah flight to facilitate Umrah pilgrims
https://arab.news/8uu7x
Pakistan’s national air carrier resumes Faisalabad-Jeddah flight to facilitate Umrah pilgrims
- Saudi destinations of Jeddah and Madinah have always been lucrative for the Pakistani airline
- Pakistan International Airlines will operate direct flights between the two cities twice a week
Cross-border clash breaks out between Pakistan and Afghanistan amid rising tensions
- Border residents say exchange of fire in the Chaman border sector lasted nearly two hours
- Both governments issue competing statements blaming the other for initiating the violence
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Afghanistan witnessed yet another border clash, according to officials in both countries who spoke in the early hours of Saturday, with each side accusing the other of launching “unprovoked” attacks.
Fighting erupted in Pakistan’s southwestern Chaman border sector, with an AFP report saying that residents on the Afghan side of the frontier reported the exchange of fire began at around 10:30 p.m. (1800 GMT) and continued for roughly two hours.
The incident underscored how tensions remain high between the neighbors, who have seen deadly clashes in recent months despite several rounds of negotiations mediated by Qatar and Türkiye that resulted in a tenuous truce in October.
“There has been unprovoked firing by Afghan Taliban elements in the Chaman Sector which is a reckless act that undermines border stability and regional peace,” said a Pakistani security official on condition of anonymity.
“Pakistani troops responded with precision, reinforcing that any violation of our territorial integrity will be met with immediate and decisive action,” he continued.
The official described Pakistan’s response as “proportionate and calibrated” that showed “professionalism even in the face of aggression.”
“The Chaman Sector exchange once again highlights the need for Kabul to rein in undisciplined border elements whose actions are destabilizing Afghanistan’s own international standing,” he added.
Relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan have grown increasingly bitter since the Taliban seized power in Kabul following the withdrawal of international forces in August 2021.
Islamabad accuses the Taliban administration of sheltering anti-Pakistan militant groups such as the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) and Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), which have carried out deadly attacks in its western provinces bordering Afghanistan, targeting civilians and security forces.
The Taliban deny the charge, saying Pakistan’s internal security challenges are its own responsibility.
The Pakistani security official said his country remained “committed to peaceful coexistence, but peace cannot be one-sided.”
“Attempts to pressure Pakistan through kinetic adventurism have repeatedly failed and will continue to fail,” he said. “The Chaman response has reaffirmed that message unmistakably.”
He added that Pakistan’s security forces were fully vigilant and that responsibility for any escalation “would solely rest with those who initiated unprovoked fire.”
Mosharraf Zaidi, spokesman for Pakistan’s prime minister, also commented on the clashes in a social media post, saying the Afghan Taliban had “resorted to unprovoked firing along the border.”
“An immediate, befitting and intense response has been given by our armed forces,” he wrote.
https://x.com/mosharrafzaidi/status/1997025600775786654?s=46&t=JVxikSd5wyl9Y96OwifS5A
Afghan authorities, however, blamed Pakistan for the hostilities.
“Unfortunately, tonight, the Pakistani side started attacking Afghanistan in Kandahar, Spin Boldak district, and the forces of the Islamic Emirate were forced to respond,” Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said on X.
https://x.com/zabehulah_m33/status/1997018198508818891?s=48&t=x28vcP-XUuQ0CWAu-biScA
Border clashes that began in October have killed dozens of people on both sides.
The latest incident comes amid reports of back-channel discussions between the two governments, although neither has publicly acknowledged such talks.
