Pakistan issues travel advisory for Lebanon amid security concerns
People gather near a site hit by what security sources said was a strike on Beirut's southern suburbs, Lebanon July 30, 2024. PHOTO: REUTERS
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has issued an advisory, urging Pakistani citizens to avoid travelling to Lebanon due to the current security situation.
In the advisory, the ministry recommended that all Pakistanis refrain from travelling to Lebanon until further notice, citing recent developments and the prevailing security conditions in the region.
The advisory also advised all Pakistanis residing in Lebanon to leave the country using available commercial flights. Those remaining in Lebanon are advised to exercise extreme caution, particularly in areas experiencing heightened tensions.
Pakistanis in Lebanon are instructed to maintain contact with the Pakistani Embassy in Beirut through telephone, WhatsApp, or email.
The Ministry provided the contact details for the Pakistani Embassy in Beirut: phone numbers +961-81669488 and +961-81815104, and email parepbeirut@mofa.gov.pk.
Israeli warplanes swooped low over the Lebanese capital Beirut on Tuesday, setting off a series of sonic booms that rattled windows across the city minutes before the head of Lebanon's Hezbollah was set to give an address.
The loud booms sent residents rushing to open their windows to prevent the glass from shattering, or standing on their balconies to get a glimpse of the planes flying over. There was no comment from the Israeli military.
In the capital's southern suburbs, a Hezbollah stronghold, members and supporters of the Lebanese armed group had gathered to watch a televised speech by its leader to mark the one-week anniversary of Israel's killing of a senior military commander.
As he began, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said the sonic booms were intended to provoke those gathered for the memorial.
The strike that killed commander Fuad Shukr was the second time Israel had struck the southern suburbs in 10 months of hostilities between Hezbollah and the Israeli military that are taking place in parallel with the Gaza war.
Hezbollah earlier on Tuesday said it launched a swarm of attack drones at two military sites near Acre in northern Israel and also attacked an Israeli military vehicle in another location.