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PIA resumes direct flights to Najaf

PIA resumed direct flights to the Iraqi city of Najaf on Sunday carrying 91 passengers aboard.

CEO of the national carrier Air Marshal Arshad Malik and Ambassador of Iraq to Pakistan Hamid Abbas Lafta were among the passengers of PK 291.

According to a communique by the Pakistani embassy in Iraq, this marked the resumption of direct flights to the city.

Upon their arrival in Najaf, they were welcomed by Pakistan’s Ambassador to Iraq Ahmad Amjad Ali, the governor of Najaf and top Iraqi civil aviation officials.

Highlighting Najaf’s historical importance, Air Marshal Arshad Malik said that it was among top destinations for Pakistani pilgrims, adding that the city was holy for all Muslim denominations.

“This flight carries with it a message of love from Pakistani people.

According to a spokesman of PIA, the Pakistani delegation returned home on the same flight.

On the occasion of Ashura, the airline decided to run special flights to Najaf. The decision was taken to help pilgrims travelling to Iraq in Muharram.

Later, a private airline in Iraq began direct flights to Pakistan. The first flight from Najaf to Karachi took off on July 16. Flights from Baghdad are being operated as well.

On September 18 this year, a special PIA flight carrying 322 pilgrims landed in Syria’s Damascus after 22 years.

The national carrier was welcomed with a water gun salute at the Damascus airport.

‘Personal opinion’

Kordahi said in a television interview that the Iran-backed Huthi rebels were “defending themselves… against an external aggression”, adding that “homes, villages, funerals, and weddings were being bombed” by the coalition.

In the interview – filmed in August but aired on Monday – he also called the seven-year war in Yemen “futile” and said it was “time for it to end”.

Saudi Arabia has stepped back from its former ally Lebanon in recent years, angered by the influence of the Lebanese Shiite movement Hezbollah, which is backed by its regional rival Iran.

On Tuesday, the Lebanese government said that Kordahi’s statements were “rejected and did not reflect the position of the government”, adding that the interview in question took place before Kordahi was appointed to the cabinet in September.

Kordahi, a well-known television presenter, told local reporters on Wednesday that the interview in question took place on August 5 and was his “personal opinion”.

“I did not wrong anyone. I did not attack anyone. Why should I apologise?” he said. “I started my position with love as a human who feels Arab suffering.”

Yemen’s civil war began in 2014 when the Huthis gained control of the capital Sanaa, prompting Saudi-led forces to intervene to prop up the government the following year.

Tens of thousands of people — most of them civilians — have died and millions have been displaced, in what the United Nations has called the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.

Rights groups have harshly criticised the coalition for civilian casualties in its aerial bombardment.

Earlier this year, Saudi Arabia announced it was suspending fruit and vegetable imports from Lebanon, saying shipments were being used for drug smuggling and accusing Beirut of inaction.

And in May, Lebanon’s foreign minister Charbel Wehbe stepped down and was swiftly replaced after comments he made irked Saudi Arabia.

UAE pulls diplomats from Beirut

The United Arab Emirates said Saturday it was withdrawing its diplomats from Lebanon, following a similar Saudi Arabia move over a Lebanese minister’s criticism of the Riyadh-led military intervention in Yemen.

The diplomatic row, which has also seen Saudi Arabia suspend imports from Lebanon and both Kuwait and Bahrain expel Beirut’s envoys to their capitals, is another blow to a country already in the grip of crippling political and economic crises.

Lebanon had been counting on financial assistance from the Gulf to rescue its economy.

“The UAE announced the withdrawal of its diplomats from Lebanon in solidarity with the sisterly Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in light of the unacceptable approach of some Lebanese officials towards Saudi Arabia,” the foreign ministry said in a statement.

It “also decided to prevent its citizens from travelling to Lebanon,” it added.

It came a day after the Saudi and Bahraini moves and hours after Kuwait asked Lebanon’s envoy to “leave in 48 hours” and recalled its ambassador from Beirut, according to state news agency KUNA.

The dispute was sparked by the broadcast this week of an interview in which Lebanon’s Information Minister George Kordahi criticised the Saudi-led military intervention in Yemen.

In his remarks — recorded in August but aired on Monday — Kordahi called the seven-year war in the Arabian Peninsula country “futile” and said it was “time for it to end”.

Kordahi said Yemen’s Huthi rebels were “defending themselves… against an external aggression”, adding that “homes, villages, funerals and weddings were being bombed” by the Saudi-led coalition.

The Huthis are backed by Saudi Arabia’s regional rival Iran, which also wields significant influence in Lebanon, due to its strong backing of the powerful Shiite movement Hezbollah.

Kordahi’s comments saw Saudi Arabia announce Friday that it was recalling its ambassador and it gave Beirut’s envoy 48 hours to leave Riyadh.

His words have also sparked calls for him to resign or be sacked.

“Enough of catastrophes. Sack this minister who will destroy our relations with the Arab Gulf before it is too late,” Lebanon’s Druze leader Walid Jumblatt said on Twitter.

‘Unacceptable’

Kuwait’s foreign ministry said the expulsion and recall was based on the “failure” of the Lebanese government to “address the unacceptable and reprehensible statements against the sisterly Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the rest” of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries.

The GCC is a six-member regional body that comprises Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Oman and Qatar.

Kuwait’s decision was also based on the Lebanese government’s “failure… to deter the continuous and increasing smuggling operations of the scourge of drugs to Kuwait and the rest of the GCC,” the ministry added.

The comments on smuggling echo Riyadh’s line, which extended to Saudi Arabia on Friday imposing a suspension on all imports from Lebanon.

In its statement on Friday, Saudi Arabia also referred to Lebanon’s failure to “stop the export of the scourge of drugs… to the Kingdom, especially in light of the terrorist Hezbollah’s control of all ports.”

Saudi Arabia announced in June that it had confiscated thousands of Captagon pills hidden in a shipment of fruit from Lebanon.

Captagon, a drug popular among fighters in war zones, usually blends amphetamines, caffeine and other substances in pill form.

Saudi Arabia, which wields strong influence over many of the smaller Gulf states, has stepped back from its former ally Lebanon in recent years, angered by the influence of Hezbollah.

In late 2017, Lebanon’s then prime minister Saad Hariri, a Sunni who had been supported by Saudi Arabia for years, announced in a televised address from Riyadh that he was resigning, citing Iran’s “grip” on his country.

He spent two weeks in Riyadh amid speculation he was being kept under house arrest there, before France intervened. He withdrew his resignation after arriving back in Lebanon.

Suleiman Franjieh, who heads Lebanon’s Marada Movement and endorsed Kordahi’s nomination as a minister, sprang to his defence on Saturday.

Protesters waiting in Wazirabad

Meanwhile, thousand of TLP supporters have been stationed near Wazirabad’s GT Road waiting for orders from their leaders. They have been told to wait until talks with the government are over.

TLP protesters will stay in Wazirabad tonight on the request of the government, says the group's spokesperson. Another round of talks between the group's leaders and a three-member government committee will take place in Islamabad tonight. #TLPDharna
— Roohan Ahmed (@Roohan_Ahmed) October 30, 2021

The marchers entered Gujranwala Friday where the Rangers drew a red line warning them against crossing it. The banner is 500m from the Chenab toll plaza. According to DAWN, a banner put up by the security forces read: “Beyond this line, the responsibility for law and order lies with Pakistan Rangers (Punjab), who have been given the authority to open fire at the miscreants so all people are strictly warned to return to their homes”.

Mobile phone and internet services in Gujranwala have been suspended. Earlier in the day, the Pakistan Railways announced that two trains from Karachi to Rawalpindi, Tezgam Express, and Pakistan Express, have been suspended on both inbound and outbound routes.

The story is being updated.

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Taliban supreme commander makes first public appearance

Taliban supreme leader Haibatullah Akhundzada has made his first-ever public appearance, officials announced Sunday, after he addressed supporters in the southern Afghan city of Kandahar.

Akhundzada has been the spiritual chief of the Islamist movement since 2016 but has remained a reclusive figure, even after his group seized power in Afghanistan in August.

His low profile has fed speculation about his role in the new Taliban government — and even rumours of his death.

On Saturday, he visited the Darul Uloom Hakimah madrassa to “speak to his brave soldiers and disciples”, according to Taliban officials.

There was tight security at the event and no photographs or video have emerged, but a ten-minute audio recording was shared by Taliban social media accounts.

Akhundzada — referred to as “Amirul Momineen” or commander of the faithful — gives a religious message.

The speech did not touch on politics but sought God’s blessing for the Taliban leadership.

He prays for the Taliban martyrs, wounded fighters, and the success of the Islamic Emirate’s officials in this “big test”.

Akhundzada was appointed leader of the Taliban in a swift transition of power after a 2016 US drone strike killed his predecessor, Mullah Akhtar Mansour.

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Corrections: Oct. 31, 2021

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PDM rally in Dera Ismail Khan, petrol prices, TLP protest

Here are some of the news we will be following today, Sunday, October 31.

The Pakistan Democratic Movement, an opposition alliance, will rally in Dera Ismail Khan against the rising prices of essential items. JUI-F’s Maulana Fazlur Rehman and PML-N’s Shehbaz Sharif will address suspporters.
All the residents of Karachi’s Nasla Tower have left their homes after the top court ordered the demolition of the building through controlled implosion. The Sindh government has also formed an eight-member committee.
Petrol prices across the country will stay the same for the next 15 days. The PM has rejected OGRA’s summary of an Rs11.53 increase in the fuel rates.

TLP updates

Government releases 350 TLP workers: Sheikh Rasheed

Life for people in Rawalpindi, Gujranwala, and adjoining areas seems to have come to a halt due to protests by the banned Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan. Mobile phone and internet services in the areas have been closed, while multiple trains have been suspended.

The protesters reached Gujranwala Friday and have been stationed in Wazirabad. They are waiting for instructions from their leadership in Islamabad.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Imran Khan has made a key offer to TLP. He said his government would not oppose the release of TLP Chief Saad Rizvi if courts made a decision, but he would not issue an executive order in this regard. The concession was, however, linked to TLP activists ending their long march. The premier allowed the ulema to meet Saad Rizvi.

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