LAHORE: Pakistan on Tuesday refused entry to 107 Pakistani citizens deported by Saudi Arabia for not having the requisite entry documents but later allowed entry to the deportees on orders of the interior ministry, airport sources said.

A flight from Jeddah carried the deportees to Lahore airport on Tuesday, however, immigration officials refused them entry as the deportees did not have the required documents needed for entry.

It was not clear why Saudi authorities deported the Pakistani citizens, at least 15 of whom were women.

Sources said immigration authorities wanted to send the deportees back to Jeddah after refusing to process their entry into Pakistan while Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) officials wanted to detain the deportees, as is the standard procedure.

However, the deportees were later allowed entry into the country by order of the interior ministry. FIA is now expected to take the deportees into custody.

Earlier on Dec 10, Pakistani authorities refused to accept six migrants after the FIA found that they had been illegally deported to Pakistan from the UK.

About 36 others, who possessed travel documents, were accepted by Pakistani authorities – 34 of whom were allowed to go home after brief questioning. Two others were sent to the Anti-Human Trafficking Cell.

A week earlier, the authorities refused to accept 49 illegal Pakistani immigrants who had been deported by Greek authorities. Only 19 people were accepted following verification. The remaining 30 deportees were sent back to Greece on the special flight that brought them to Pakistan.

In a statement released at the time, Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar said: "No unregistered deportee will be allowed to come to Pakistan and if that happens they will be sent back."

Opinion

Editorial

Drawdown
Updated 20 May, 2025

Drawdown

There is a strong incentive for reinforcing the military drawdown with some soft measures.
Unusual benchmarks
20 May, 2025

Unusual benchmarks

THE IMF has slapped Pakistan with several ‘new’ structural benchmarks — some of them quite unusual — under...
Celebrating Sirbaz
20 May, 2025

Celebrating Sirbaz

SIRBAZ Khan has achieved what no other Pakistani has before him. The scale of his accomplishment also makes him one...
Famine in waiting
Updated 19 May, 2025

Famine in waiting

Without decisive action, Pakistan risks falling deeper into a chronic cycle of hunger and poverty. Food insecurity is most harrowing in Gaza.
Erratic policy
19 May, 2025

Erratic policy

THE state needs to make up its mind on the import of used vehicles. According to recent news reports, the FBR may be...
Overdue solace
19 May, 2025

Overdue solace

LATE consolation is a norm for Pakistanis. Although welcome, a newly passed bill that demands tough laws and...