Stranded Pakistanis in Syria to return by Dec 12 night

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Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif was informed that stranded Pakistani nationals who had arrived in Beirut from Syria would be flown back to Pakistan on a chartered flight. The flight is scheduled to depart on the night between December 12 and 13.

The prime minister chaired a high-level meeting to discuss the evacuation process. During the meeting, Federal Minister for Planning, Ahsan Iqbal, was assigned the responsibility of ensuring a warm welcome for the returning citizens at the airport.

The meeting was part of the ongoing efforts to assist Pakistani nationals affected by the situation in Syria.

Earlier on Monday, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif directed the foreign minister and the Pakistan Embassy in Damascus to urgently formulate a plan for the safe evacuation of Pakistani citizens in Syria, following the collapse of President Bashar al-Assad's regime.

According to the embassy, over 1,000 Pakistani nationals, including 260 pilgrims, are currently in Syria. International media reported on Monday that many Pakistani pilgrims, alarmed by the situation, have confined themselves to their hotels.

In a seismic moment for the Middle East, the Syria's Islamist rebels declared they had ousted Assad after seizing control of Damascus on Sunday, forcing him to flee to Moscow and ending his family's decades of autocratic rule after more than 13 years of civil war.

The Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group said its fighters had entered the capital with no sign of army deployments. Reportedly, Assad left Syria via Damascus airport before the army security forces disappeared from the streets.

He directed the Pakistan Embassy in Damascus to establish an information desk and a helpline to facilitate the Pakistanis. He added that the foreign ministry's Crisis Management Unit and information desks at the embassies in Syria and its neighbouring countries should remain open round the clock.

Later, the prime minister spoke with Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati and sought his personal intervention and support in facilitating the immediate evacuation of the Pakistani nationals, currently stranded in Syria, through Beirut.

The two leaders discussed the evolving situation in Syria, according to a press release issued by the Media Wing of the Prime Minister's Office. Mikati assured Shehbaz that Lebanon would welcome Pakistani nationals from Syria and extend all possible support to them in their safe return home.

With additional input from APP