Evacuation of Pakistanis stranded in Yemen begins

RAWALPINDI: The first batch of 502 Pakistanis came back to Pakistan on Sunday night after an evacuation operation was started by the authorities to bring back the stranded Pak expatriates from strife-torn Yemen.
A PIA aircraft brought the Pakistanis from the Yemeni city of Al-Hudaydah after they had travelled to the city from the capital Sanaa, the media reported.About 150 of the passengers alighted from the aircraft in Karachi while the rest were flown to Islamabad.
According to media reports, the Pakistanis travelled from Sanaa in a caravan to Al-Hudaydah and reached there at about 03:00am on Sunday. The aircraft reached there in the afternoon. All the passengers, including women and children, were happy that they were going back to their home from the war-torn country.
Emotional scenes were witnessed at the Karachi airport where a large number of relatives had gathered to receive their kin. The passengers lauded the role of the media and the government in the evacuation. They also raised slogans of ‘Pakistan Zindabad’.
Agencies add: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has directed Minister for Information, Broadcasting and National Heritage Senator Pervaiz Rashid and MNA Tariq Fazal Chaudhry to receive the evacuated Pakistanis at the Islamabad airport on his behalf.
Nawaz Sharif was personally monitoring the situation on therescue of Pakistanis stranded in Yemen, promising the initiation of the first phase of their safe return.During 48-hours before the beginning of arrival of the stranded Pakistanis, PM Nawaz remained in constant contact with the authorities concerned, including the Foreign Ministry, Ministry of Aviation and Ambassador of Pakistan in Yemen.
Pakistan Ambassador to Yemen Irfan Shami, meanwhile, said safety of Pakistani people in Yemen was his first priority.Irfan Shami, while talking to a private channel, said every possible step was being taken to safely evacuate the Pakistani citizens residing in Yemen, whereas 95 percent Pakistanis will be evacuated soon from the war-torn country.
The Pakistan ambassador said after the departure from Sanaa to Hudaydah, he was in constant contact with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. He has also formulated a list of citizens residing in Yemen.
Meanwhile, a Pakistan Navy frigate left Karachi on Sunday morning for the Red Sea/ Gulf of Aden to undertake the evacuation operation of stranded Pakistani nationals in Yemen, should such a need arise.
The Pakistan Navy ship will be readily available in the Gulf of Aden, to respond to any situation according to the national requirements, said a press release of PN.Meanwhile, Foreign Office Spokesperson Tasnim Aslam has said that no further evacuation is as yet required from the Al-Hudaydah city.
She said fighting was going on in Aden city where 150 to 200 Pakistanis were stranded. She said the Aden Airport was not accessible, but the city’s port was free.She said a PN ship was on its way to Aden and they had also contacted the Chinese officials there to seek their help in the evacuation.
The spokesperson said that in the Moqalla city, where 150 to 250 Pakistanis were stranded, the situation was peaceful. She said the government was trying to ascertain how many people wanted to be evacuated from the nearby airport Riyan or Ghaidah.
The spokesperson said 150 Pakistanis will travel to Moqallaa from Aden by road to join 100 already there. She said an aircraft will go to Moqalla on Tuesday to bring Moqalla and Aden evacuees.