ISLAMABAD – Pakistan on Monday said it was evacuating its citizens from Libya where protests were being held against the rule of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi and chartered flights have been arranged for the purpose. “Two special chartered flights carrying 354 Pakistani expatriates evacuated from Libya will arrive in Lahore. The first special Turkish Airlines chartered flight carrying 180 Pakistanis will reach Lahore later tonight. The second special chartered flight is due on Tuesday at Lahore,” said the Foreign Office spokesperson, Tehmina Janjua, in a statement issued here.
“The Foreign Ministry is in close contact with the Pakistan Navy and the Air Force for the evacuation of Pakistanis living in Libya,” Foreign Office spokeswoman Tehmina Janjua said. There are around 18,000 Pakistani expatriates in Libya. “A group of Pakistanis from Libya has already reached Tunisia, from where they will be brought to Pakistan,” she said.
“Contacts with friendly governments continue and progress has been made for the repatriation of Pakistanis,” Janjua said. “Our missions in the region have clear instructions from the Foreign Ministry to facilitate the early and safe repatriation of Pakistanis. Embassy officials have been sent to the Libyan border to receive the arriving Pakistanis.
They are working with the local authorities in Tunisia, Algeria, Egypt and Turkey to ensure prompt repatriation, especially of those Pakistanis who have arrived without proper documentation and passports,” she said. “Arrangements, for example, are being made for the arrival of a group of Pakistanis by sea to Turkey from where they will be evacuated by air,” she said.
She said the Foreign Ministry continued to monitor the situation in Libya with a special focus on the safety of Pakistani expatriates in that country on the instructions of President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani. “The Foreign Ministry is in contact with friendly countries such as Turkey, China, Tunisia, Algeria, Egypt and others for the evacuation of Pakistani expatriates. All routes are being worked,” Janjua said.
“A group of Pakistanis has reached the Algerian border with Libya. Our Embassy in Algiers is working out the details of their evacuation,” she said. Janjua said, “The Foreign Ministry is working around the clock with its missions in the region to assure the safety of Pakistanis in Libya.”
