pakistan

Pakistan urged not to deport Afghan US visa, refugee applicants

Open letter urges Islamabad to “at a minimum” exempt them from detention or deportation

Published

7 months ago

October 18, 2023

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Pakistan urged not to deport Afghan US visa, refugee applicants

A group of former top US officials and US resettlement organizations on Tuesday urged Pakistan to exempt from deportation to Afghanistan thousands of Afghan applicants for special US visas or refugee relocation to the United States.

Pakistan has set a Nov 1 deadline for all illegal immigrants, including hundreds of thousands of Afghans, to leave the country or face forcible expulsion.

Some 20,000 or more Afghans who fled the 2021 Taliban takeover of Afghanistan are in Pakistan awaiting the processing of their applications for US Special Immigration Visas (SIVs) or resettlement in the United States as refugees.

“To deport them back to an environment where their lives would be in jeopardy runs counter to humanitarian principles and international accords” signed by Pakistan, said an open letter sent to the Pakistani embassy signed by 80 former senior US officials, other individuals and US resettlement groups.

They included Colin Kahl, the No 3 Pentagon official until July, three former US ambassadors to Kabul and two retired U.S. generals.

The letter was organized by #AfghanEvac, the main coalition of US groups working to resettle in the United States Afghans who fear retaliation for working for the US government or US-linked organizations during the 20-year American war with the Taliban.

Those in Pakistan awaiting the processing of their applications for SIVs or refugee resettlement include former translators, journalists, women activists and “other professionals who face significant risks” if they return home, the letter said.

The signatories urged Pakistan to immediately halt deportations of those Afghans and “at a minimum” exempt them from detention or deportation.

Pakistan says the deportation process would be orderly and conducted in phases and could begin with people with criminal records.

Some 1.73 million Afghans in Pakistan have no legal documents, according to Islamabad, which alleged that Afghan nationals carried out 14 out of 24 suicide bombings this year.

And in Geneva, UN human rights experts called on Pakistan to refrain from deporting Afghan nationals after Islamabad ordered all illegal immigrants, including 1.73 million Afghan citizens, to leave or face expulsion.

“We urge Pakistan to uphold the absolute and non-derogable principle of non-refoulement and prevent collective expulsion and forced return,” the experts, a group of UN special rapporteurs, said in a statement.

“The lack of domestic asylum laws and procedures does not absolve states of their obligations to uphold the principle of non-refoulement under international human rights and customary law.”

Pakistan’s diplomatic mission to the UN in Geneva did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the experts’ statement.

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pakistan

Ali Pervaiz sworn in as minister of state

Published

18 hours ago

May 17, 2024

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Ali Pervaiz sworn in as minister of state

Member of the National Assembly Ali Pervaiz took the oath of the office of Minister of State here on Friday.

President Asif Ali Zardari administered the oath to Ali Pervaiz in a ceremony held at the Aiwan-e-Sadr.

The swearing-in ceremony was attended by Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, parliamentarians, and notables from different walks of life.

Ali Pervaiz was elected as MNA from NA-119 constituency of Lahore on the ticket of the Pakistan Muslim League-N in the recently held by-election.

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pakistan

Court summons Ali Amin Ganadapur in ‘illegal weapons, alcohol case’ on May 20

Published

18 hours ago

May 17, 2024

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Court summons Ali Amin Ganadapur in 'illegal weapons, alcohol case' on May 20

Islamabad High Court (IHC) has directed Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur to appear in person before the court on May 20 regarding a case involving allegations of possessing weapons and alcohol.

During a hearing presided over by Judicial Magistrate Sohaib Bilal of Islamabad district and session court, the court handed a questionnaire consisting of nine questions to Ali Gandapur’s counsel, Zahoorul Hassan.

The questionnaire seeks responses from the accused regarding various aspects of the case.

Among the questions posed to Gandapur are inquiries about his awareness of the evidence and arguments presented by the prosecution during the hearing, as well as his involvement in a gathering that allegedly violated orders issued by the district magistrate on October 30, 2016.

The court seeks clarification on an incident where Gandapur reportedly fled into a forest from his car, which was subsequently apprehended by the police.

The questionnaire addresses the recovery of illegal arms, a liquor bottle, and a person identified as Allah Nawaz wearing a bulletproof jacket with an unlicensed gun in Gandapur’s car.

The court references a report from the Punjab Forensic Science Agency confirming the presence of alcohol in the bottle recovered from Gandapur’s vehicle.

The court also inquired about the filing of charges against Gandapur and the testimony provided by prosecution witnesses. the accused is given the option to present a defense under Section 340.

The case hearing has been adjourned until May 20 to allow Gandapur to respond to the questionnaire and ordered him to appear before the court in person on that date.

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pakistan

Summer vacation for schools in Punjab to start from June 1

Published

18 hours ago

May 17, 2024

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Summer vacation for schools in Punjab to start from June 1

The provincial education department on Friday announced the schedule for summer vacation across the province as above-normal temperatures hit the parts of country.

The department has issued a notification, stating that the summer holidays will be observed from June 1 to August 14. It added that all public and private schools will reopen on August 15 (Thursday).

The department has also revised the school timings to protect students and teachers from the blistering heat. As per the revised schedule, schools will open at 7:00am to 11:30am till Thursday while the classes will conclude at 10:30am on Fridays.

Meanwhile, Met office said due to the presence of high pressure in the upper atmosphere, heatwave conditions are likely to develop over most parts of the country, especially over Punjab and Sindh from 21st May and likely to convert to severe heatwave conditions from 23rd to 27th May.

Day temperatures are likely to remain 4 to 6°C above normal in Sindh and Punjab from 21st to 23rd and from 06 to 08°C from 23rd to 27th May.

Day temperatures are likely to remain 4 to 6°C above normal in Islamabad, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Kashmir, Gilgit-Baltistan and Balochistan from 21st to 27th May.

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