No student, only Pakistani tourists & short-term visitors in Turkey boarded special PIA flight: Embassy

ISLAMABAD, Apr 6 (APP):Pakistan’s embassy in Turkey on Monday, dismissing a news item published by a newspaper in Pakistan, on Monday said no Pakistani student was advised to board the special flight on April 3.

“The embassy would like to clarify that the Pakistani nationals, repatriated on
the special PIA flight on Friday, included tourists and visitors on short-term visas as well as Pakistanis who had earlier been left stranded at the Istanbul International Airport after suspension of flight operations,” the embassy said in a statement issued here.

The embassy quoted the news reported that mentioned a couple of Pakistani students in Turkey who claimed of being advised by the Consulate General Istanbul to travel from another city to board the special PIA flight on Friday, 3rd April.

“Contrary to the claims, no Pakistani student in Turkey was advised to travel to Istanbul to board the special flight,” it added.

It said the embassy in Ankara and Consulate General in Istanbul were in close contact with the local Pakistani community including Pakistani students to ensure their safety and welfare in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We are fully cognizant of the concerns, being raised by some Pakistani students in Turkey, in particular with regard to the suspension of flight operations. We will once again urge patience and understanding of the entire Pakistani student community in Turkey in view of the unprecedented global challenge that has impacted all countries,” the statement added.

The embassy reiterated its earlier advisory to all Pakistani students to follow the local safety regulations, and strictly avoid any travel. Embassy’s previous advisories to the students in this regard are available on its official website http://www.pakembassyankara.com) as well as twitter handle (@PakTurkey).

It mentioned that there were currently no further updates regarding any special flight operations to Pakistan and advised all Pakistani students to follow the official twitter handle of the embassy of Pakistan for any information with regard to the resumption of flight operations.

“The Embassy, moreover, is in touch with the local universities to help address certain practical difficulties, being faced by some of our students as a result of the recent safety and health regulations/measures, and reported disruption of some campus services,” it said.

The embassy expressed gratitude to several Turkish universities for their support in helping address many of these issues, including through provision of alternative accommodation to many students after the closure of some university dormitories.

The students were asked to use the following emergency helpline numbers and Email addresses to bring to embassy’s notice any problems being faced by them at their respective universities so that they may be taken up appropriately.

Embassy of Pakistan Ankara, Telephone +90 531 496 6399, +90 537 367 9845 Email parepankara@mofa.gov.pk , parepankara.consular@yahoo.com, parepankara@yahoo.com Consulate General of Pakistan Istanbul, Telephone +90 533 022 4695, +90 552 634 3774 Email parepistanbul@mofa.gov.pk, consulgeneral@pakconsulateistanbul.com.