WARSAW: Citizens of France and Poland have commended Pakistan for their assistance in the rescue operation of retrieving French and Polish mountaineers stranded on the killer mountain, Nanga Parbat in northern Pakistan last week.
A Pakistan Army aviation helicopter had transported four members of a Polish climbing team from an expedition at the K2 base camp to Nanga Parbat in order to rescue the two missing mountaineers.
Elisabeth Revol, the French mountaineer was rescued, however, her climbing partner Tomasz Mackiewicz could not be saved and is presumably dead.
In a statement issued in Warsaw, the French mission to Poland stated that “Those involved in this rescue operation demonstrated exemplary courage and solidarity.”
The mission further said that they appreciate the exceptional efforts that Polish climbers showed besides, the cooperation between the Polish, French representatives and in Pakistan, as well as with the Pakistani authorities.
“In an expedition that ended in a tragedy, Mackiewicz became the first Pole to conquer in winter the 8,126-metre summit of Nanga Parbat, the ninth-tallest mountain in the world,” said his climbing partner Revol.
Both the climbers made it to the summit’s peak on January 25, making it the second expedition to conquer the mountain in winter.
Pakistan’s mission deputy head in Warsaw, Shifaat Ahmad Kaleem said that a handful of polish citizens had also contacted the embassy to appreciate Pakistan’s efforts in rescuing the climbers.
While speaking to a TV channel, Kaleem expressed deep sorrow over the missing Polish mountaineer. The diplomat extended his sympathies to the missing mountaineers family members.
