Around 350 Pakistani prisoners repatriated

Muscat: Around 350 Pakistani prisoners pardoned by His Majesty Sultan Haitham Bin Tarik have been flown to Pakistan and reunited with their families.

Two special repatriation flights by SalamAir, in coordination with the authorities in the Sultanate and the Embassy of Pakistan in Oman, were scheduled for Lahore and Karachi on April 16 and 17, respectively.

His Excellency KK Ahsan Wagan, the Ambassador of Pakistan to Oman expressed his sincere gratitude to His Majesty the Sultan on behalf of the leadership and the government of Pakistan.

“HM the Sultan has pardoned almost 350 Pakistani detainees, convicted prisoners and those people who had entered the country illegally,” he said.

“I, on behalf of the leadership of Pakistan, the president, the prime minister and the government of Pakistan would like to offer my deepest gratitude to HM the Sultan, to the government of Oman and the brotherly people of the country for this extremely cordial and benevolent announcement.

“I sincerely express my gratitude to His Majesty the Sultan and to the government of Oman for not only releasing the Pakistani detainees and the prisoners but for also arranging two special flights to carry my countrymen back to Pakistan,” Wagan said.

On April 16, 175 Pakistani detainees, who were imprisoned in Oman due to labour violations and illegal entry to the country, were granted a royal pardon and flown to Lahore to be repatriated with their families.

Moreover, on April 17, around 158 prisoners who committed petty crimes were flown to Karachi to be reunited with their families after the royal pardon.