ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has sent a C-130 aircraft to bring back bodies of 28 pilgrims who were killed in a bus crash in Iran this week, the Pakistani information ministry said on Friday.
The bus carrying Shiite pilgrims from Pakistan to Iraq crashed on Tuesday night in the central Iranian province of Yazd, according to Pakistani and Iranian authorities.
Another 23 people suffered injuries in the crash that happened on their way to Iraq, with more than a dozen of the injured pilgrims in serious condition.
“A special C-130 aircraft of the Pakistan Air Force has been sent to Iran to bring back dead bodies of Pakistani pilgrims,” the information ministry said in a statement on Friday afternoon.
“The dead bodies of Pakistani pilgrims will be brought back from Iran today (Friday).”
A majority of the deceased Pakistani pilgrims belonged to the Larkana district in Pakistan’s Sindh province, according to the statement. Pakistan’s ambassador to Iran had recommended sending bodies of Pakistani pilgrims by air due to the long distance between Yazd and Larkana, in view of hot weather.
Pakistan’s ambassador to Iran, Mudassir Tipu, said they had completed arrangements for the repatriation of bodies and some of the injured persons.
“Mission is most grateful to Pakistan and Iran for utmost cooperation dealing with tragic situation,” he said on X.
There were 51 people on board at the time of the crash outside of the city of Taft, some 500 kilometers (310 miles) southeast of the Iranian capital, Tehran. The pilgrims had been on their way to Iraq to commemorate Arbaeen.
Millions of Shiite Muslims are currently partaking in the Arbaeen pilgrimage in Iraq’s Karbala Governorate, which marks the 40th mourning day following the martyrdom of Imam Hussain (RA), a central figure in Shiite Islam and the grandson of Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him).
Iran has one of the world’s worst traffic safety records with some 17,000 deaths annually. The grave toll is blamed on wide disregard for traffic laws, unsafe vehicles and inadequate emergency services in its vast rural areas.
Iranian state television has blamed Tuesday’s crash on the bus brakes failing and a lack of attention by its driver.
Bodies of 28 Pakistanis killed in bus crash in Iran to be repatriated today
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Bodies of 28 Pakistanis killed in bus crash in Iran to be repatriated today
- The bus carrying Pakistani pilgrims overturned in Iran’s Yazd on Tuesday, following a technical defect in its braking system
- The pilgrims were on their way to Iraq to commemorate Arbaeen, which marks 40th day following the death of Imam Hussain (RA)
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.
