ISLAMABAD: At least three persons went missing after a cable car fell into the Indus River in the northwestern Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, rescue officials said on Friday, amid a search for potential survivors.
The incident took place in the Upper Kohistan district of the province, when the three men aged between 18 and 36 years were using the cable car to cross the river, according to a Rescue 1122 spokesperson.
Rescue 1122 divers, disaster management and medical teams reached shortly after the control room was informed about the incident.
“Despite a rapid flow of water, rescue teams are engaged in search operations at three different locations,” the Rescue 1122 spokesperson said in a statement.
A team of specialized divers had also been called in from Bisham area to participate in the operation, while heavy machinery was being used to pull the cable car out of the river.
Makeshift cable cars are widely used in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, northern Kashmir and Gilgit Baltistan regions. Local communities build them out of scrap metal because it’s cheaper and there is no other alternative considering the terrain of the area which makes road travel more costly.
In August last year, rescuers had pulled out seven children and a man to safety after their cable car was stranded high over a remote ravine in KP’s Battagram district, ending an ordeal lasting more than 15 hours. The high-risk operation was successfully completed in the dark of night after the cable car snagged early in the morning, leaving it hanging precariously at an angle.
The rescue effort had transfixed the country, with Pakistanis crowded around television sets, as local media showed footage of an emergency worker dangling from a helicopter cable close to the small cabin, with those onboard cramped together.
Three missing after cable car falls into Indus River in northwestern Pakistan
https://arab.news/m9qet
Three missing after cable car falls into Indus River in northwestern Pakistan
- Search operation comprising professional divers underway to recover any survivors, rescue official says
- Communities in northern Pakistan build cable cars out of scrap metal as alternate to costly road travel
Pakistan opposition rallies in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to demand release of Imran Khan
- PTI-led gathering calls the former PM a national hero and demands the release of all political prisoners
- Government says the opposition failed to draw a large crowd and accuses PTI of damaging its own politics
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s opposition led by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party demanded the release of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan at a rally in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on Sunday, describing him as a national hero who continues to command public support.
The gathering came days after a rare and strongly worded briefing by the military’s media chief, Lt. Gen. Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, who dismissed Khan as “narcissistic” and “mentally ill” on Friday while responding to the former premier’s allegations that Pakistan’s chief of defense forces was responsible for undermining the constitution and rule of law.
He said that Khan was promoting an anti-state narrative which had become a national security threat.
The participants of the rally called for “civilian supremacy” and said elected representatives should be treated with respect.
“We, the people of Pakistan, regard Imran Khan as a national hero and the country’s genuinely elected prime minister, chosen by the public in the February 8, 2024 vote,” said a resolution presented at the rally in Peshawar. “We categorically reject and strongly condemn the notion that he or his colleagues pose any kind of threat to national security.”
“We demand immediate justice for Imran Khan, Bushra Bibi and all political prisoners, and call for their prompt release,” it added, referring to Khan’s wife who is also in prison. “No restrictions should be placed on Imran Khan’s meetings with his family, lawyers or political associates.”
Addressing the gathering, Sohail Afridi, the chief minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, denied his administration was not serious about security issues amid increased militant activity. However, he maintained the people of his province had endured the worst of Pakistan’s conflict with militancy and urged a rethinking of long-running security policies.
The resolution asked the federal government to restore bilateral trade and diplomatic channels with Afghanistan, saying improved cross-border ties were essential for the economic stability of the region.
The trade between the two neighbors has suffered as Pakistan accuses the Taliban administration in Kabul of sheltering and facilitating armed groups that it says launch cross-border attacks to target its civilians and security forces. Afghan officials deny the claim.
The two countries have also had deadly border clashes in recent months that have killed dozens of people on both sides.
Some participants of the rally emphasized the restoration of democratic freedoms, judicial independence and space for political reconciliation, calling them necessary to stabilize the country after years of political confrontation.
Reacting to the opposition rally, Information Minister Attaullah Tarrar said the PTI and its allies could not gather enough people.
“In trying to build an anti-army narrative, they have ruined their own politics,” he said, adding that the rally’s reaction to the military’s media chief’s statement reflected “how deeply it had stung.”
“There was neither any argument nor any real response,” he added, referring to what was said by the participants of the rally.
