ISLAMABAD: Saudi Arabia’s Ambassador hints at good news over removal ofUmrah Visa ban for Pakistanis.
The Saudi Ambassador in Islamabad Nawaf bin Said Al-Malki has said that banon issuance of Umra and visit visas will be lifted after introducing asafety mechanism.
Talking to the Federal Minister of Religious Affairs Noorul Haq Qadri whomet him at the Saudi Embassy here on Friday, Al-Malki said that ban onissuance of visas had been imposed on visitors of 72 countries to SaudiArabia as a precautionary measure.
“The ban has been imposed for a temporary period and it will be liftedafter adopting a safety mechanism,” he said.
The Saudi envoy told the minister that all the expired visas of PakistaniUmra Zaireen would be extended so that they did not face any difficulties.
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A statement issued by the Ministry of Religious Affairs said that theMinistry was continuously in contact with the Saudi government on the issue.
The two sides also agreed to hold another meeting in Islamabad, next week.Meanwhile, the Minister in a video message rejected reports circulating onsocial media that condition of producing a declaration for intendingpilgrims on belief in ‘Khatam-e-Nabuwwat (SAW) has been lifted.
“There is no truth in such reports. Every intending pilgrim will have tosign or fix thumb impression on the declaration,” the minister said.
