ISLAMABAD: Pakistani climber Asif Bhatti, who was stranded earlier this week on "killer mountain" Nanga Parbat, was rescued and brought back to base camp on Thursday, Dubai-based mountaineer Naila Kiani, who coordinated the rescue mission, confirmed.
Suffering from snow blindness, Bhatti was unable to descend from the towering mountain's Camp 4 where he remained stranded on Monday. Azerbaijani mountaineer Israfil Ashurly found Bhatti, who then aborted his quest to summit the mountain and helped the Pakistani climber to safety at the base camp.
Pakistani mountaineers Fazal Ali and Younus also joined a rescue mission to help Ashurly escort Bhatti to safety at the base camp.
"Today on the fourth day, after relentless effort, the heroes successfully reached the base camp location," Kiani wrote in a lengthy Facebook post. "With precision and care, they executed a daring rescue operation, faced with extremely adverse and challenging conditions on an already treacherous mountain with Asif's snow blindness."
Asif Khoja, Bhatti's social media in-charge, thanked the three mountaineers for rescuing Bhatti.
"The rescue of Dr Asif Bhatti stands as a testament to the dedication, professionalism, and selflessness that each of you embodies," he wrote on Twitter.
Nanga Parbat stands 8,125 meters (26,660 feet) tall and is recognized as the world’s ninth-highest peak. Several climbers in the past have died attempting to summit the towering mountain. Polish climber Pawel Tomasz Kopec became the latest victim of the treacherous mountain, passing away from acute altitude sickness on Monday.
