ISLAMABAD: Pakistan witnessed an inflow of $30.3 billion in remittances in the last fiscal year, the country’s central bank announced on Tuesday, marking a 10.7 percent increase compared to $27.3 billion in the previous financial year, much of which was sourced from the Middle East.
Workers’ remittances form a cornerstone of Pakistan’s economy, significantly contributing to the country’s foreign exchange reserves and reducing the current account deficit.
The government has actively promoted the employment of Pakistanis abroad, especially in the Middle East, to ensure a steady increase in them, which are deemed crucial for the economic growth of the country.
“Workers’ remittances recorded an inflow of $3.2 billion during June 2024,” the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) said while sharing the data for the previous month that marked the end of the last fiscal year. “In terms of growth, during June 2024, remittances increased by 44.4 percent on [year-on-year] basis.”
“Cumulatively, with inflow of $30.3 billion workers’ remittances increased by 10.7 percent during FY24 compared to inflow of $ 27.3 billion recorded in FY23,” it added.
The SBP said the remittance inflows last month were mainly sourced from Saudi Arabia ($808.6 million), the United Arab Emirates ($654.3 million), the United Kingdom ($487.4 million) and the United States ($322.1 million).
Pakistan records 10.7 percent surge in remittances during last fiscal year, much of it from Mideast
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Pakistan records 10.7 percent surge in remittances during last fiscal year, much of it from Mideast
- The central bank says cumulative remittance inflow went up to $30.3 billion in the country
- Government has promoted employment of Pakistanis abroad, especially in the Gulf states
Pakistan’s northwestern province to hold apex committee meeting on deadly shooting in Bannu today
- The shooting incident took place at a rally in Bannu, with people asking for peace amid a surge in violence
- Five participants of the Bannu sit-in have been invited to attend the meeting with civil and military officials
PESHAWAR: Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province is set to hold an apex committee meeting today, Thursday, to discuss the situation in Bannu district, where two people were killed in a shooting incident targeting a large rally demanding peace amid a surge in militant violence in the area.
The rally was organized last Friday after a series of attacks on security forces, government officials and anti-polio vaccination teams in the province. Bannu itself was hit by a surge in militancy where 10 soldiers were killed earlier this month when militants attacked the military cantonment in the city.
The gunfire in the Bannu peace rally led to a stampede that also injured more than 20 people. The incident prompted the demonstrators to continue their sit-in that has now entered its fifth day.
In a statement issued on Thursday, the KP administration’s spokesperson, Barrister Muhammad Ali Saif, said the provincial apex committee will be held under the leadership of Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur to discuss the demands of Bannu protesters.
“Decisions will be taken with regard to the Bannu incident and the current wave against terrorism,” he said. “Members of the Bannu Aman Jirga [peace rally] have also been invited to take part in the apex committee meeting.”
He added the meeting will also be attended by senior civil and military officials.
Pakistan’s federal government last month announced a new campaign to militant violence in the country, particularly its two western provinces bordering Afghanistan.
Rauf Qureshi, a senior member of the Bannu peace rally, told Arab News he was optimistic the apex committee would take the right decisions to restore peace in the area and respect the sentiments of the participants of the sit-in.
“I think our demands are legitimate, which revolve around peace and tranquility,” he continued. “We demand a life that is free from terror attacks and in which we can go to our businesses, schools and hospitals without any sense of fear.”
He said the members of the peace rally were willing to continue their sit-in indefinitely, if their demands were not met.
Five representatives of the sit-in have been invited to attend the apex committee meeting.
“We are optimistic our legitimate demands will be swiftly approved and without any hesitation since we are asking for peace,” Qureshi added.
Pakistan condemns ‘excessive force’ by British police at Manchester airport after video of violence
- The video shows a police official kicking a British-Pakistani on his head before stamping his boot on it
- The incident sparked protest outside Greater Manchester Divisional Police headquarters on Wednesday
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Thursday expressed concern over the “use of excessive force” by British police at Manchester Airport after a video of officers hitting dual Pakistani nationals went viral, which later led to the removal of a male officer from operational duty and the arrest of four people.
The video showed the officer holding a taser over a man lying face down on the ground, with a woman in traditional Muslim attire next to him. The officer can be seen kicking the man’s head once before stamping his boot on it again and then using his knee to pin the man down.
He then moves toward another man, who can be seen holding his hands behind his head, telling him to kneel before kicking him in the stomach and pinning him to the ground.
Throughout the incident, two female police officers can be seen at the site trying to stop at least three men from filming. A London-based journalist working with a Pakistani media outlet confirmed that the arrested men were British-Pakistanis.
“We have seen the disturbing reports about the incident at Manchester Airport. Apparently, it involves dual-national Pakistanis,” foreign office spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said during a weekly news briefing on Thursday.
“We are obviously concerned about the conduct of the police and the excessive use of force in the viral video,” she continued. “We also advise all Pakistani nationals abroad to abide by the laws of the host country and respect the local culture, customs and legal system, police and cooperate with the local police.”
She confirmed the Pakistani mission in Manchester was in contact with the members of the Pakistani community and also the local police.
Earlier, Assistant Chief Constable Wasim Chaudhry in Britain said three police officers were assaulted, a female officer’s nose had been broken, and other officers sustained injuries that required hospital treatment.
He also confirmed the arrest of four individuals on suspicion of assault and obstructing police in carrying out their duties.
However, he added: “We know that a film of an incident at Manchester Airport that is circulating widely shows an event that is truly shocking. The use of such force in an arrest is an unusual occurrence. One male officer has been removed from operational duties.”
According to Manchester Evening News, hundreds of people staged a protest outside the Greater Manchester Divisional Police (GMP) headquarters in Rochdale on Wednesday evening. It said some protesters had covered their faces and were chanting “GMP shame on you” while others used fireworks.
“We’re no longer going to settle for this police brutality,” the report quoted a protester as saying. “We put our trust in the police and what they do instead they inflict violence upon us when we surrender to them. This is supposed to be the police, instead, they are gangsters in uniforms. We’re not going to put up with this anymore.”
The Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham said he raised public concerns with the deputy chief constable, assuring that investigation into the issue would be handled properly.
Pakistan PM to visit Tehran on July 30 for Iran’s president-elect’s inauguration
- Masoud Pezeshkian won the presidential election held after Ebrahim Raisi’s death in helicopter crash
- Pakistan and Iran have made peace overtures after exchanging airstrikes earlier this year in January
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s foreign office announced on Thursday Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will visit Iran on July 30 to attend the inauguration ceremony of President-elect Dr. Masoud Pezeshkian.
This will be Sharif’s second visit to Iran in three months, as he previously visited the neighboring state to offer condolences on the death of President Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash in May.
Earlier this month, voters in Iran gave a decisive win to reformist candidate Pezeshkian in the runoff election against the ultraconservative Saeed Jalili to replace Raisi.
Pezeshkian is now required to take an oath in Iranian parliament before assuming the office of the head of the state next week.
“At the invitation of the Speaker of the Islamic Consultative Assembly of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, the Prime Minister of Pakistan, [Shehbaz] Sharif, will visit Tehran on 30 July to attend the inauguration ceremony of the President-elect of Iran, Dr. Masoud Pezeshkian,” the foreign office spokesperson, Mumtaz Zahra Baloch, informed during her weekly media briefing.
She said the visit demonstrated the dedication of both countries to enhancing high-level interactions and bilateral collaboration.
“The visit attests to the commitment by the two countries to strengthen leadership level engagements and bilateral cooperation,” Baloch said.
Pakistan and Iran have had a history of rocky relations despite several commercial pacts. Their highest profile agreement is a stalled gas supply deal signed in 2010 to build a pipeline from Iran’s Fars gas field to Pakistan’s southern provinces of Balochistan and Sindh.
Pakistan and Iran also find themselves at odds due to the instability along their shared porous border, with their leaders routinely trading blame after militant attacks in their respective territories.
Earlier this year in January, Pakistan and Iran exchanged airstrikes, with each government claiming to have targeted militant hideouts in the other country.
Both states have since made peace overtures and restored bilateral ties through multiple high-level visits.
Religious affairs minister reports 50,000 Pakistanis missing in Iraq during religious tourism
- Chaudhry Salik Hussain shares the startling figure while briefing the Senate Standing Committee on Religious Affairs
- He says his ministry has formulated a new policy to address the issue, which is awaiting the federal cabinet’s approval
ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Religious Affairs Chaudhry Salik Hussain shared a startling figure on Wednesday while discussing the number of Pakistanis who went to Iraq for religious tourism but decided not to return, saying there were 50,000 such cases without specifying the period during which these people went missing occurred.
Every year, thousands of Pakistani pilgrims travel to Iran, Iraq and Syria to visit religious shrines in these countries.
During the briefing to the Senate Standing Committee on Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony, the minister said the government had formulated a policy to streamline such visits to the Middle Eastern states, adding it was awaiting the approval of the federal cabinet.
A statement released after the committee’s proceedings reflected that participants discussed the issue at length.
“Chaudhry Salik Hussain revealed during the meeting that nearly 50,000 Pakistanis had gone missing in Iraq,” the statement said.
It informed the government wanted to promote the group system for pilgrims visiting the aforementioned countries, adding that Iraq had its own monitoring system for pilgrims on its borders.
The meeting also reviewed the issues faced by pilgrims at the Taftan border between Pakistan and Iran, which they mostly cross to visit the shrines in the three Middle Eastern states.
Meanwhile, Senator Raja Nisar Abbas, who is part of the Senate committee, said a majority of people who go missing in other countries travel there illegally.
He maintained that those who go for pilgrimage to these countries have their travel documents collected at the border.
He also highlighted the issues faced by pilgrims at the Taftan border, pointing out that they had to wait for several days in the absence of basic facilities.
Abbas proposed that a complaint cell be established for these people, similar to the one that helps Hajj pilgrims.
KSrelief sponsors five eye camps conducting over 2,000 surgeries in Pakistan
- The camps were set up in Sindh and Balochistan provinces in areas with limited eye care services
- Over 21,000 medical examinations were held and 4,683 pairs of corrective glasses distributed
ISLAMABAD: The King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KSrelief) has successfully completed its sponsorship of five eye camps in Pakistan, conducting over 2,000 surgeries and distributing more than 4,500 pairs of corrective glasses, according to a statement on Thursday.
KSrelief has made significant contributions to Pakistan by providing food aid, medical supplies and disaster relief assistance. In recent years, it has actively supported Pakistani communities affected by natural disasters, such as floods and earthquakes, and has launched health care projects including mobile clinics and vaccination campaigns.
This was the third phase of its project to combat blindness and eye diseases in the country, undertaken in collaboration with Al-Basar International Foundation and Al-Ibrahim Eye Hospital Karachi, providing advanced eye care to individuals facing financial challenges or lacking access to specialized treatment.
“Throughout the program, more than 21,614 medical examinations and 2,038 surgeries were successfully performed,” said the statement released by the humanitarian organization. “Additionally, 4,683 pairs of corrective glasses were distributed, along with prescribed medications, ensuring comprehensive care for all patients.”
KSrelief said its camps were “strategically located” in both rural and urban areas of Sindh and Balochistan provinces, adding they targeted regions with limited eye care services.
“The primary objective was the early detection and treatment of eye-related issues to prevent blindness and improve the quality of life for thousands of people,” the statement added.
The organization described the impact of the initiative as “significant,” saying it benefitted communities in both provinces.
The camps were set up in Karachi, Shikarpur and Matli in Sindh, and Khuzdar district in Balochistan provided specialized eye care services.
KSrelief plans four more eye camps in September that will be set up in Kharan, Mardan, Jhelum and Talagang to facilitate more patients in other provinces as part of the third phase.
