Back home: Another 176 Pakistanis return

Some 145 Pakistanis are still facing an uncertain future in Sana’a

ISLAMABAD:

Another 176 Pakistanis, stranded in war-torn Yemen, arrived at Islamabad’s Benazir Bhutto International Airport on Friday in a special PIA flight amid jubilation by their family members, who were anxiously waiting for their safe return.

The special PIA plane took them from Djibouti where they arrived on Thursday evening on a Chinese naval ship from Yemen’s Eden port. With the arrival of this fresh group, the total number of Pakistanis – who have so far returned from Yemen – reached 678.

Carrying Pakistani flags, the jubilant and relieved Pakistanis thanked the government for ensuring their safe return.  “We were under constant threat. There were air strikes in our area,” said Muhammad Ahmed, who was among the 175 Pakistanis, who arrived on Friday.

He said the Houthi rebels are hostile to Pakistanis since the government decided to support the Saudi Arabia in the conflict.

Anum, who was schoolteacher in Yemen, said she could not believe that she was back home. “We were confined to our homes. Last few days were certainly very terrifying,” she said while narrating her ordeal.

Defence Minister Khawaja Asif, who along with other senior officials, received the Pakistanis, told reporters that they hoped to repatriate the remaining Pakistanis in next two days.

Embassy closure worries standard Pakistanis

Around 145 Pakistanis, who could not travel to Hudiadah on Sunday, are facing an uncertain future in Sana’a which is in the control of Houthi rebels.  The closure of Pakistan Embassy in Sana’a as well as return of the ambassador has compounded their problems.

The decision to abruptly shut down embassy in Yemen has come under severe criticism from the families of those whose loved one are still stuck in Sana’a and raised many questions about the handling of stranded Pakistanis.

Pakistan’s Ambassador to Yemen Dr Irfan Yousuf Shamsi and the entire diplomatic staff returned home on Sunday in a special PIA flight that also brought back over 500 stranded Pakistanis.

Foreign office spokesperson Tasnim Aslam has admitted that it was the responsibility of the Pakistani mission to ensure safe return of Pakistanis but insisted that the embassy could not force people.

She claimed that those stuck in Sana’a had initially refused to travel in a convoy from Sana’a to Hudidah leaving the ambassador and other staff with no other option but to leave them behind.

However, the defence minister contradicted the foreign office version saying that some of the stranded Pakistanis in Sana’a could not travel to Hudidah because their documents were not complete.

Sources close to the ambassador claimed that it was the government decision to close down the embassy because of the worsening situation. They said the envoy had nothing to do with it as he had done whatever he could to bring back the stranded Pakistanis.

It is estimated that between 2,500 to 3,000 Pakistanis were residing in different cities of Yemen before the Saudi-led Gulf-states military alliance launched attacks against Houthi rebels.

According to the foreign office, about 2,000 of the Pakistanis left the country after the Pakistani embassy issued an advisory.

The remaining Pakistanis were asked to contact with the embassy for their return. As many as 916 of them registered themselves with the mission, she said.

But Tasnim said around 70 to 90 Pakistanis refused to travel to Hudaidah. That number has now reached 145.

Since the situation in Sana’a is volatile, it is not possible at the moment to bring them back directly from the Yemeni capital.


Published in The Express Tribune, April 4^th, 2015.