Mar 30, 2015
News
500 stranded Pakistanis reach home from Yemen
* 150 Pakistanis will travel to Mukalla city from Aden by road today to join another 100 stranded there, from where a PIA plane will bring them back tomorrow
KARACHI: Some 503 Pakistanis reached their homeland Sunday night by a special Pakistan International Airline (PIA) flight from the war-torn Yemen’s Al-Hudaydah city.
A PIA Boeing-747 jumbo jet was sent to Al-Hudaydah airport after being given clearance by Saudi aviation authorities. The flight evacuated 503 stranded Pakistanis, including three newborns.
A convoy of 600 Pakistanis had reached Al-Hudaydah Sunday after escaping from the embattled Yemeni capital Sanaa to leave for Pakistan. The convoy was inspected heavily by the Yemeni armed forces and the Houthi militia before it was permitted to exit Sanaa.
Pakistan’s ambassador to Yemen Dr Irfan Shami had said earlier that 482 Pakistanis will be evacuated on the first flight. He maintained that around 1,000 Pakistanis will be evacuated and sent to Pakistan in a span of two days. Women and children will be transported first, the ambassador said.
“On seeing the plane landing in Al-Hudaydah, stranded Pakistanis expressed their happiness by clapping and raising national slogans,” he said.
Foreign Secretary Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry said late Saturday that around 3,000 Pakistanis lived in Yemen, with some 1,000 trying to leave the country.
The convoy of Pakistanis, which included women and children, stayed in a school in Al-Hudaydah until their departure for Pakistan.
According to the spokesman of the Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), the flight operations will be continued until all Pakistanis are evacuated from Yemen.
The crew was given brief training on tackling conflict zones before their departure to bring back the stranded Pakistanis.
A frigate belonging to Pakistan Navy also left for the Gulf of Aden on the coast of Yemen Sunday from a seaport in Karachi to rescue the stranded people.
Pakistan Navy Ship will be readily available in the Gulf of Aden to respond to any situation according to the national requirements, said a press release of PN.
Pakistan Navy maintains a high degree of readiness, both in peace and war, to undertake a range of military, constabulary, diplomatic and benign operations, the statement said.
According to CAA, another PIA airplane, an Airbus-310, will be sent shortly to Yemen to bring back the remaining people.
Irfan Shami, Pakistan’s ambassador to Yemen, said safeguarding the lives of Pakistani people in Yemen is their first priority.
Shami told a private channel that every possible steps were being taken to safely evacuate Pakistan citizens residing in Yemen and 95% Pakistanis will be evacuated soon.
Defense Minister Kh Asif contacted his Saudi counterpart and spoke on the safe evacuation of Pakistani citizens from Yemen.
The Saudi defence minister assured Asif that evacuation of stranded Pakistanis will be taken care of as Saudi citizens and all land, sea and air routes will be usedfor the purpose.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif personally monitored the situation. During 48-hours before the beginning of arrival of stranded Pakistani, Nawaz remained in contact with authorities concerned including Foreign Ministry, Ministry of Aviation and ambassador of Pakistan in Yemen, according to a press release issued by his office.
The prime minister has directed the Civil Aviation officers to send more planes to Yemen during next 48 hours to bring back remaining stranded countrymen.
The prime minister was apprised on Sunday that Mukalla city was still peaceful and its airport was functional.
From Aden, a total of 150 Pakistanis would travel to Mukalla by road to join other 100 who were wishing to be evacuated.
One plane would leave for Mukalla day after tomorrow to bring back both Mukalla and Aden evacuees whereas a naval ship has left Karachi on Sunday to evacuate Pakistanis from the Aden port.
Saudi Arabia evacuated dozens of diplomats from Yemen on Saturday and the United Nations pulled out international staff after a third night of Saudi-led air strikes trying to stem advances by Iranian-allied Houthi fighters.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, in a telephone talk with Saudi King Salman on Saturday, offered “all potentials of the Pakistan army”, media quoted the Saudi Press Agency as saying. Defence Minister Khawaja Asif told parliament on Friday Pakistan had made no decision on whether to give military support to the Saudi-led coalition, while pledging to defend Saudi Arabia against any threat.
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk