Karachi operation a ‘debt’ govt has paid off: Kh Asif

LAHORE: Minister for Defence Khawaja Asif on Monday said the Karachi operation was a debt that the PML-N-led government had paid off.
Addressing a seminar at the Wapda House here, he said Pakistan will fully defend the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Saudi Arabia.“Saudi Arabia is our great friend, which always stood by us through thick and thin. Pakistan is ready to extend full support if there is any threat to Saudi Arabia’s territorial integrity,” the minister emphasised.
He said the process of evacuating the Pakistani families from war-hit Yemen had commenced and they will all get back home safely. So far, around 493 Pakistanis have been flown back home from Yemen.
In a statement, Foreign Office spokesperson Tasnim Aslam said over 400 Pakistanis had been evacuated from the Al-Huaidah city by a PIA flight. She said fighting was going on in Aden where up to 200 Pakistanis were stranded.
The spokesperson said 150 Pakistanis will travel from Aden for Al-Mukalla by road where an aircraft will go on Tuesday (today) to bring them back.Tasnim Aslam said a ship was also on its way to Aden and ‘we are contacting Chinese officials there to seek their help in the evacuation of Pakistanis’.
About the power shortages in the country, the minister said the Neelum-Jhelum Hydropower Project will be completed on time.The minister said the government was also working on alternative sources of power generation, including wind, solar and coal, to overcome the power shortages. He said the government could save 1,500 megawatts of electricity if the markets were closed on time.
He said the government took major decisions like the Operation Zarb-e-Azb in North Waziristan and also launched a targeted operation in Karachi to eliminate terrorism and crime.The decision on joining or not joining the Gulf-led operation in Yemen will be taken keeping the country and the Muslim Ummah’s interest in mind, he added.
On the other hand, Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal said safe evacuation of all the Pakistanis stranded in Yemen was the top priority of the government.
Talking to the media here, Ahsan Iqbal said Pakistan wanted peace in the region, including the Middle East.“Pakistan will not join the war of any other country, but it is ready to defend the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Saudi Arabia,” he added.