Three-year-old girl returns home after parents’ conviction in Saudi Arabia

Mother and father of Sehma were arrested at Jeddah airport on recovery of drugs last year

ISLAMABAD: Sehma Bibi, a three-year old Pakistani girl, returned home on Monday after her parents were convicted in Saudi Arabia on drug trafficking charges.

The girl, resident of Swat, visited Saudi Arabia along with her parents to perform Umrah around a year ago, but the family was arrested at Jeddah airport on recovery of drugs.

According to a press release of Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis, the Saudi authorities tried the couple as per law of the land, who had concealed around 100 capsules filled with heroin in their abdomen.

Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development Zulfi Bukhari had given the task to Managing Director of Overseas Pakistanis Foundation (OFP) Dr Amer Sheikh and Community Welfare Attaché (CWA) Jeddah to look into the matter and extend all possible assistance to the family.



The parents of Shema Bibi were convicted on recovery of the drugs. However, the child was released by the Saudi authorities after negotiations with the Pakistani mission. Father of the minor girl will be executed, while her mother will remain imprisoned for 18 years at Reform Jail Dhahban near Jeddah.

“As a result of the efforts of the Pakistani Mission in Jeddah, Shema Bibi was taken into custody on May 5. The child has been brought back to Pakistan on May 6 through PIA Flight PK-742 from Jeddah to Islamabad,” reads the statement.

Bukhari praised the efforts of the OPF MD and CWA Jeddah and at the same time expressed sorrow for the innocent child who has lost her parents. “We are trying our best to stop these kinds of incidents from happening. We do not know the circumstances under which people are being forced to commit such acts,” he added.



Prime Minister Imran Khan’s friend expressed best wishes for the child and instructed OPF chief to make arrangements for her well-being.

According to the documents available with The Express Tribune, 45% of Pakistanis imprisoned in Saudi jails were convicted or accused of drug smuggling, while 15% have theft charges against them, 12% have been charged or convicted of fraud and 8% are imprisoned for ‘indecency’.