Nine beggars en route to Saudi Arabia offloaded at Multan airport

The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) offloaded nine alleged beggars in the disguise of Umrah pilgrims from a Saudi Arabia-bound flight at Multan airport.

According to the statement shared by the FIA, during the immigration process, it transpired that a group of nine people got on PIA flight SV801 for the Kingdom for the purpose of begging. 

A spokesperson stated that all nine suspects, including two women, had been offloaded from the flight and taken into custody. The accused were residents of Multan, Layyah, Bhakkar, and Sargodha districts.

FIA claimed the accused could not satisfy the authorities regarding Umrah expenses, and they did not have receipts for accommodation in Saudi Arabia. 

The suspects have been handed over to Anti-Human Trafficking Circle Multan for further investigation after black listing their passports on the directives of the Director General FIA.

Due to the increase in Pakistani beggars in Saudi Arabia, the Kingdom warned Pakistan in September to prevent Pakistani beggars from flying to the Kingdom under Umrah visas. 

The ministry stressed that if the situation is not controlled, it could negatively affect the Pakistani Umrah and Hajj pilgrimage. 

In response, Pakistan’s Ministry of Religious Affairs has decided to introduce an "Umrah Act", which aims to regulate travel agencies facilitating Umrah trips, bringing them under legal oversight.