The US plan to relocate Afghan transit passengers has been changed and the decision to relocate foreigners to Karachi has been postponed.
Talking to DG Civil Aviation Flight Lieutenant (Retd) Khaqan Murtaza, he said that the decision not to bring people coming from Afghanistan on transit to Karachi has been taken due to security reasons.
He said that currently passengers coming to Afghanistan will be brought to Islamabad and Karachi as well as Lahore airports are currently on standby.
The DG Civil Aviation added that the United States has also significantly reduced the number of people being evacuated from Afghanistan.
On the other hand, Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed has said that Afghans coming to Pakistan will not be allowed to move freely during transit.
Talking to Urdu News, he clarified that the expenses of foreigners, including Afghans, will be borne by the countries that bring them from Afghanistan to Pakistan.
Regarding the number of Afghans coming to Pakistan, he said that it depends on the United States and other countries how much assistance they need from Pakistan.
He said that the United States and its allies could avail a large number of transit facilities in Pakistan and visas would be issued to as many travelers as they requested for transit.
Sheikh Rashid Ahmed said that those coming to Pakistan on transit would be issued 30-day visa and they would not be allowed to move without any delay.
According to the news, a meeting was also held regarding the resettlement of Afghan citizens in Karachi in which a place was identified near Karachi Airport Hotel while arrangements were also made for them in Gadap.
It may be recalled that on August 31, the United States is scheduled to complete the evacuation of its citizens from Afghanistan and steps have been intensified in this regard.
A statement issued by the commissioner's office in Karachi on August 26 stated that at least 2,000 Afghans were expected to arrive in Karachi from Afghanistan in the next three to four days.
The day before, the Islamabad administration had taken control of hotels in Islamabad for several weeks to manage those coming from Afghanistan.
Thousands of Afghans are expected to arrive at Islamabad airport from Afghanistan in the coming days.
