GILGIT: The body of Pakistani climber Sohail Sakhi was buried in his hometown of Aliabad in Gilgit-Baltistan’s Hunza on Sunday after his funeral prayers were attended by a large number of people.

The climber was among a 10-member expedition that went missing on July 30 after a deadly avalanche on Broad Peak, one of the world’s highest mountains. His body was recovered on August 13 and transported to the mountain’s base camp.

The ill-fated expedition was led by world-renowned British-Nepali mountaineer Nirmal Purja, whose body was recovered on August 2 and later transported to his country.

So far, the bodies of eight climbers from the 10-member expedition have been found, while the search continues for American climber Sarah Mallory Geis and Nepal’s Nawang Thindu Sherpa.

On Saturday, Pakistan Army helicopters airlifted Sakhi’s body from the Broad Peak base camp to Skardu. The body had been recovered by three volunteers from Shigar two weeks after the incident.

On Sunday, Sohail Sakhi’s body was transported to Nasirabad and then Aliabad. People from all walks of life gathered at Aliabad College Ground in Hunza to participate in the last rites of Sohail Sakhi.

People paid tribute to Sohail Sakhi, placed flowers on his body and offered condolences to his bereaved family.

His funeral prayers were offered at Aliabad College Ground and attended by a large number of people, including GB Tourism and Culture Minister Naiknam Karim and district administration officials.

“We have gathered here to say goodbye to a brave mountaineer of the land,” said Mr Karim while speaking on the occasion, terming the climber’s death a loss for both GB and Pakistan.

He added that the climber “loved mountains” and had made a great name for himself in a short time.

Mr Karim offered his condolences to the bereaved family while paying tribute to the late climber.

Sakhi was later laid to rest in his ancestral graveyard in Aliabad in the presence of a large number of people.

Sohail Sakhi, 30, had led rope-fixing teams and frequently volunteered for rescue operations in the mountains.

Sakhi had successfully summited Kanchenjunga (8,586 metres), the world’s third-highest mountain, in Nepal earlier in May. He had previously scaled K2, Nanga Parbat, Gasherbrum I and Gasherbrum II without supplemental oxygen, establishing himself among the country’s strongest high-altitude climbers.

Sajid Hussain, assistant director at the GB tourism department, told Dawn that the GB government would pay Rs3 million to Sakhi’s family under an insurance policy introduced by the government for local porters, climbers and mountain guides.

Ayaz Shigri, general secretary of the Alpine Club of Pakistan, told Dawn that the bodies of seven climbers, including Purja, Wang Zhong from China, Nima Sherpa, Gyalu Sherpa, Killi Pemba “Kilu” Sherpa, Oman’s Nadhira Ahmed Abdullah Al Harthy and Nepal’s Pur Bahadur Gurung, had already been repatriated to their respective countries.

He said the bodies of two remaining climbers had not yet been recovered.

Mr Shigri said rescue efforts for the remaining climbers, including American climber Sarah Mallory Geis and Nepalese climber Nawang Thindu Sherpa, would resume once weather conditions improved and the area was deemed safe.

Published in Dawn, August 17th, 2026