About 375 out of 654 Pakistani pilgrims stranded at Baghdad Airport have arrived back in Karachi, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.

The remaining stranded Pakistanis are likely to be brought back to Pakistan through a flight today afternoon.

Earlier, in a statement the Foreign Office said as many as 654 Pakistani zaireen (pilgrims) are currently stranded at Baghdad Airport as two aircraft of Iraq Airway which were scheduled to fly them back home have developed a technical fault.

According to a statement released by the Foreign Office in Islamabad, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Aviation and Pakistan’s Embassy in Iraq are in contact with Iraqi authorities and Iraq Airways for early repatriation of the stranded Pakistanis.

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Ishaq Dar has directed the ambassador of Pakistan in Baghdad to look after the stranded Pakistanis and to facilitate their early return. The embassy has provided meals and facilitated their temporary stay in Baghdad. 

The return of these zaireen is expected to start tonight.

The first of the two flights is expected to take off from Baghdad at 2200 hrs (Iraq local time) 1200 am PST. “We expect all stranded passengers to return by 31 August 2024,” the Foreign Office statement added.

Reporter Anwar Abass