ISLAMABAD, June 20: Beijing has asked Islamabad to locate and hand over 22 Chinese rebels who are believed to be hiding somewhere in tribal areas in Pakistan, a source in the interior ministry told Dawn on Wednesday.

The source said China had provided a list of 22 wanted rebels belonging to East Turkistan Islamic Movement, a secessionist organisation, based in Sinkiang province bordering Pakistan.

The sources said that Interior Minister Aftab Ahmed Khan Sherpao would visit China from June 24 to discuss the issue and other matters of common interests including terrorism.

The source said the minister was leaving for China with a three-point agenda including the presence of Chinese rebels in the country’s tribal area, security of Chinese people working on different projects in Pakistan and training of security officials of the two sides.

When contacted, Interior Ministry spokesman Brig Javed Iqbal Cheema said the minister was going to China on an invitation of the Chinese government.

However, he said, the agenda of the meeting had not been finalised so far. The Chinese government, he said, had not yet sent the agenda to the interior ministry.

He was of the view that the government of China would definitely raise the issue of its rebels hiding in Pakistan.