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FIA captures 7-member human smuggling gang in Karachi
KARACHI: Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has arrested seven individuals during a massive operation against an alleged human smuggling network in Karachi, officials said on Monday.
The raid was conducted out by the Anti Human Trafficking Circle on the instructions of the FIA director Karachi Zone, an FIA spokesperson said. The operation was conducted in North Nazimabad where the accused allegedly maintained offices in the name of numerous organizations.
The group is charged with tricking people into believing they would be given jobs and permits for European countries and collecting enormous sums of money from applicants, investigators said.
During the raid, agents of the FIA found hundreds of Pakistani passports, guns, purported fake police uniforms, laptops and other items that investigators said could be evidence. Authorities said the defendants operated out of a rented building that was purportedly the network’s office.
Preliminary investigations revealed that the accused reportedly charged the victims between Rs800,000 and Rs1 million each on the promise of abroad jobs and visas. Of the applicants, several did not get visas or their money back, the FIA said.
The agency also said some group members, apparently dressed in fake police uniforms, pressured and threatened victims when they asked for refunds or updates on their applications.
So far, FIA has identified 52 alleged victims and attempts are ongoing to find further complainants and collect further evidence, the FIA stated.
The allegations involve a network that investigators believe may have been engaged in people smuggling and financial fraud for the past five years, although those allegations are still being investigated.
The FIA stated that the investigation had been widened to identify and arrest other alleged facilitators and to analyze the group’s financial transactions. The investigation is ongoing and no judge has ruled on the allegations yet.
The Punjab government has decided to celebrate Basant next year with the traditional kite-flying event being held in February instead of January.
In this regard, Punjab Home Department and the district administration have prepared a draft plan for Basant in Lahore next year.
The festival has been rescheduled to February and the final date will be revealed after the consent of the provincial government, sources added.
Preparations will be mindful of last year’s experience and preparations. Permission for kite, string and other associated manufacturing operations is also likely to be given soon while laws and regulations governing kite flying will be completed before the festival.
Bahrain Foreign Minister Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani called Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar last nite.
Foreign Minister Al Zayani thanked DPM Dar on signing of the Makkah Joint Defence Agreement between Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkey. He also said he would visit Pakistan soon.
Dar appreciated Dr. Al Zayani’s interest to visit Pakistan and thanked him for his good sentiments.
He emphasised Pakistan’s strong commitment to promote dialogue and diplomacy to achieve peace and stability in the region and beyond.
US President Donald Trump said on Monday he will demand that Iran pay compensation for “all of the people that they have killed and gravely wounded,” in response to Iran seeking compensation for the damages it has incurred from US and Israeli attacks.
Trump’s social media post came after Iran said over the weekend it was nearing a deal with Oman defining new shipping lanes between them through the Strait of Hormuz but repeated that the US must meet conditions including compensation and an end to sanctions and military threats, before the strategic waterway is reopened.
“It is an interesting idea because now I am likewise demanding compensation from Iran, for all of the people that they have killed and gravely wounded with their roadside bombs and many conflicts,” he wrote on Truth Social.
Trump also referenced and claimed compensation from Iran for the October 2000 deadly bombing of the US Navy guided-missile destroyer USS Cole at a Yemeni port.
The FBI has attributed that bombing, which killed 17 sailors and wounded more than three dozen others, to al Qaeda.
Trump added that Tehran should also pay compensation to the families of the thousands of people during anti-government protests in January, Iran’s worst domestic unrest since the era of its 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Rights groups say the Iranian government has continued to crack down on opponents during the war.
Punjab announces to hold Basant in Feb next year
Bahrain FM congratulates Dar on Makkah Joint Defence Deal
Trump: Iran must compensate for those it has killed, maimed
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