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Pakistani pilgrims pray for Palestinians, Muslim world on sacred Day of Arafat

Muslim pilgrims offer prayers at top of the rocky hill known as the Mountain of Mercy, on the Plain of Arafat, during the annual Hajj pilgrimage near the holy city of Makkah, Saudi Arabia, on June 5, 2025. (AP)
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Updated 05 June 2025
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Pakistani pilgrims pray for Palestinians, Muslim world on sacred Day of Arafat

  • Over 117,000 Pakistanis have joined millions of Muslims from around the world in Arafat to seek forgiveness
  • Pilgrims express satisfaction with facilities provided by Pakistan’s Hajj mission supported by Saudi authorities
Updated 05 June 2025
SAIMA SHABBIR

ISLAMABAD: Pakistani pilgrims on Thursday vowed to pray for Palestinians and the wider Muslim world as they joined over a million fellow worshippers in Arafat on one of the most sacred days in Islam to seek forgiveness.

The Day of Arafat, observed on the 9th of Dhu Al-Hijjah, the final month of the Islamic calendar, marks the spiritual peak of the annual Hajj pilgrimage. Its central ritual, Wuquf, involves standing in devotion from noon until sunset near Mount Arafat, where the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) delivered his farewell sermon.

After sunset, pilgrims travel to Muzdalifah, located between Arafat and Mina, to collect pebbles for the symbolic “stoning of the devil” ritual performed the following day.

“It is a big day for the Muslims around the world and those who are present here,” Pakistan’s Minister for Religious Affairs Sardar Muhammad Yousaf said while speaking to media from Mount Arafat.

“I urge Pakistani pilgrims that along with praying for their own families, they should also pray for the country, Muslim Ummah, especially people of Gaza, Palestine and Kashmir,” he added.

Malik Aslam, a Pakistani pilgrim from Gujar Khan, a city in Rawalpindi District, said the situation in Gaza was deeply disturbing and that he would pray for Palestinians.

“All pilgrims should pray for all the Muslims, especially those in Palestine,” he told Arab News. “Pilgrims should pray for the success of Muslims in all fields.”

“I am also praying for my parents and all those who left this world,” he added.

Expressing his feelings from Mount Arafat, Muhammad Usman, another pilgrim from Gujrat district in Punjab, said he was thankful to God for blessing him with the opportunity to perform Hajj.

“Today, I am reflecting on my entire life and praying that Allah grant me a better, righteous life ahead,” he told Arab News, saying he would begin a new chapter of life after Hajj.

“I hope to leave here with all my known and unknown sins forgiven,” he added.

Muhammad Abdullah, from Mardan in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, said his day was going well, as the weather was not too hot.

“I will pray for the whole Ummah, following example of our Holy Prophet [PBUH],” he added.

Speaking about the arrangements, Samad Wazir, a pilgrim from the northwestern Waziristan tribal district, expressed satisfaction with the facilities provided by both the Pakistani Hajj mission and Saudi authorities, hoping the same standard would continue in the coming days.

“It is very well arranged and there has been no problem at all in the tents and other places,” he said, adding that everyone had their own folding beds and received meals on time in the tents.

“Even on the buses, the arrangements were smooth, as everyone boarded in turn with the help of Hajj volunteers, who also guided us all the way to our tents,” he added.

Munir Ahmed Bhatti, a pilgrim from Gujranwala city, also praised the Pakistani mission for the arrangements in Mina and Arafat.

“We gathered for Hajj and this time the government of Pakistan has done very good arrangements and we are satisfied,” he said, adding that pilgrims got good residences, food and transportation.

Over 117,000 Pakistani pilgrims are currently in Saudi Arabia for Hajj 2025.

Topics: Hajj 2025 Pakistan Palestine Day of Arafat

Traders say Karachi plaza fire caused $54 million losses as search for bodies continues

Updated 6 sec ago
Naimat Khan and Ismail Dilawar
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Traders say Karachi plaza fire caused $54 million losses as search for bodies continues

  • Authorities say at least 67 people died in January 17 blaze at Gul Plaza complex
  • Recovery teams search unstable debris, Sindh government announces compensation
Updated 6 sec ago
Naimat Khan and Ismail Dilawar

ISLAMABAD/KARACHI: A deadly fire at a major shopping plaza in Pakistan’s largest city of Karachi has caused estimated losses of up to Rs15 billion ($53.6 million), a traders representative said this week, as authorities continue rescue and recovery operations and struggle to identify dozens of victims killed in the blaze.

The fire broke out on Jan. 17 at Gul Plaza, a densely packed commercial building in the heart of Karachi and home to over 1,200 shops, trapping workers and shoppers inside and burning for more than 24 hours before being brought under control. At least 67 people have been confirmed dead, officials say, while recovery teams remain at the site amid fears of further structural collapse.

Tanveer Pasta, president of the Gul Plaza Market Association, said all shops in the plaza were destroyed, estimating total losses at up to Rs15 billion ($53.6 million).

“There were big importers sitting here,” he told Arab News on Thursday. “Just three days before this fire, 31 [shipping] containers were unloaded.”

Earlier this week, the Sindh government had announced compensation of Rs10 million ($35,720) for each person killed in the fire and said affected shopkeepers would also receive financial assistance.

Karachi Mayor Murtaza Wahab said the city administration remained focused on rescue operations and on handing over victims’ remains to their families as quickly as possible. His remarks came after he visited the homes of several victims, according to a statement from his office.

“Rescue personnel of the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation are still engaged in the rescue operation, while the administration is making every effort to hand over [remains] of the victims, loved ones to their families at the earliest,” Wahab was quoted as saying.

Identification has been significantly slowed by the condition of the bodies recovered from the site, Karachi Police Surgeon Dr. Summaiya Syed said.

Most remains were found in fragments, she said, complicating forensic identification and prolonging the process for families waiting for confirmation.

Relatives of more than a dozen missing persons have remained near the destroyed plaza and at hospitals even after providing DNA samples. Some families have criticized what they describe as the slow pace of recovery and identification.

Wahab said the provincial government had committed to supporting affected families and rehabilitating victims.

“The Sindh government would also not sit back until the victims are fully rehabilitated and that all possible support would be provided [to them],” he said.

Authorities have not yet confirmed the cause of the fire. Police have said preliminary indications point to a possible electrical short circuit, though officials stress conclusions will only be drawn after investigations are completed.

Deadly fires are a recurring problem in Karachi, a city of more than 20 million people, where overcrowded markets, aging infrastructure, illegal construction and weak enforcement of safety regulations frequently contribute to disasters. Officials say a blaze of this scale is rare.

Topics: Gul Plaza fire Karachi deadly fires

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