Canada-bound Afghans left in the dark after two charter flights from Islamabad are cancelled & More News Here

Two charter flights scheduled to go away Islamabad for Canada carrying Afghan refugees did not depart Pakistan this week, CBC News has realized. 

“That was quite disappointing; to find out that the flight was cancelled,” mentioned Jameel Haqmall, a former Canadian NGO worker who fled Afghanistan in May together with his household after months of dwelling in hiding.

“Everything was packed, everyone was in the mood of travelling,” he advised CBC News from his resort room in Islamabad on Wednesday morning.

Then got here the tersely worded electronic mail from the United Nations International Organization for Migration, itemizing Haqmall’s identify and that of his 23 members of the family. 

“Your scheduled flight to Canada for the 29th is cancelled for the moment. Once we have new schedule, we will give you an update,” it learn. 

It was the second flight cancelled this week. The first was certain to Saskatoon Monday night time, and was additionally cancelled with none rationalization. Passengers arrived to the airport and have been distributed boarding passes earlier than being advised they needed to go away.

No rationalization for the cancelled flights have been offered to Haqmall or his household by the UN, the authorities of Pakistan or the Canadian authorities. Eleven earlier flights from Pakistan have introduced Afghans to Canada in the previous couple of months.

Tory MP’s feedback rile Pakistan

The cancellations come shortly after the Pakistan authorities expressed outrage over current feedback by Conservative MP Tom Kmiec in the House of Commons.

On June 17 Kmiec questioned the Liberal authorities over its plan to spend $50,000 for a go to in 2020 by a Pakistani common, Qamar Javed Bajwa. 

“General Bajwa has been accused of toppling two governments in Pakistan. The military under his command has been involved in human rights abuses and extrajudicial killings and has links to terrorism groups,” Kmiec mentioned.

On June 23, The Daily Pakistan newspaper reported Pakistan’s overseas workplace had summoned Canada’s High Commissioner to debate the remarks.

This Monday, Pakistan’s Defence Minister, Khawaja Asif, slammed the Canadian authorities in Pakistan’s Parliament, over remarks made by the Calgary Shepard MP.

“I believe the Canadian lawmaker does not represent his country or people,” Asif mentioned.

It’s not clear whether or not the diplomatic tensions between the two international locations contributed to the flight cancellations. But the dispute comes not lengthy after Pakistan promised to assist pace up the course of for these fleeing Afghanistan by issuing momentary transit visas to facilitate journey to 3rd international locations. 

A Canadian authorities official, who spoke on the situation they not be named as a result of they are not approved to talk on the topic, mentioned “it’s a risky narrative to give [Kmiec] that much power,” and attributed the cancellations as an alternative to “a lack of communication within the Pakistani government.”

Haqmall mentioned relations between the two international locations should not restrict his household’s immigration prospects. 

“I hope that the Canadian government can find a solution to this issue as soon as possible,” he mentioned. 

Asad Ali Afghan, a former Canadian navy interpreter who’s in Pakistan together with his household awaiting a flight to Canada, mentioned most of the households in Islamabad who smuggled themselves by way of the Afghanistan-Pakistan border have now obtained authorized permission to go away the nation, however stay uncertain when that may truly occur, now that two flights have been cancelled. 

Work with Pakistan ongoing: Ottawa

CBC News reached out to Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly and Immigration Minister Sean Fraser however neither addressed the diplomatic row between Ottawa and Islamabad straight, nor did they clarify why the flights have been cancelled, however they mentioned they have been engaged on options. 

“We intend to keep working with Pakistan to find solutions to the issues facing our efforts,” Joly’s spokesperson Adrien Blanchard mentioned in a press release, including that Pakistan stays “an important geopolitical partner for Canada in South Asia.”

Fraser’s spokesperson, Aidan Strickland, couldn’t present a timeline for when flights would resume, citing operational security causes, however mentioned in a press release that “every step along the way there’s a unique challenge depending on the circumstances,” and the division was centered on transferring individuals shortly and safely. 

Asad Ali Afghan, who has been in Islamabad for eight months, advised CBC News he couldn’t consider the final time flights out of Pakistan have been cancelled or delayed.

Pakistan’s High Commission in Ottawa referred requests for remark to the ministry of the inside in Islamabad, which has but to reply.

Meanwhile, Kmiec defended his speech in a press release to CBC News, saying “Conservatives will always ensure the Liberal government gets value for its money and isn’t incurring frivolous expenses.”

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