By Staff Writer
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has arrested five men who worked as car washers and helpers in Israel for four years, violating a ban on travel to the Jewish state, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) said on Wednesday.
The men, from Mirpurkhas in southern Sindh province, paid an Israeli agent between 300,000 and 400,000 rupees ($1,800-$2,400) each to arrange their travel and employment in Tel Aviv, FIA Sindh Director Abdul Hameed Bhutto said.
“They sent their salaries to their relatives in Pakistan through Western Union,” he told Reuters. “They stayed in Tel Aviv for four to seven years.”
Pakistan does not recognise Israel and bars its citizens from visiting the country. Pakistani passports state they are valid for all countries except Israel.
Bhutto said the men were arrested after an inquiry based on a report of foreign remittances from Israel.
They left Karachi for Kenya on Pakistani passports in November 2016 and then flew to Israel via Jordan with the help of the agent, who was also their relative and an Israeli citizen, he said. They returned to Pakistan in December 2019 using the same route.
“They violated multiple laws by traveling to a country that is not recognised by Pakistan and using Pakistani passports that are not valid for Israel,” Bhutto said.
The FIA said it had registered cases against the men under the Emigration Ordinance 1979, the Passport Act 1974, and the Pakistan Penal Code. They face up to seven years in prison if convicted.
The arrests come months after reports of Pakistani goods being sold in Israeli markets stirred controversy in Pakistan. The reports followed a claim by a New York-based group of American Jews that the first shipment of “Pakistan-origin food products” had been offloaded in Israel in April.
The American Jewish Congress said the transaction involved Pakistani-Jewish businessman Fishel Benkhald, based in Karachi, and three Israeli businessmen from Jerusalem and Haifa.
Benkhald also shared on Twitter a video of dates, dried fruit and spices he “exported” from Pakistan to the Israeli market.
The Pakistani government has denied any such exports, reiterating that there had been “no change” in its policy regarding Israel.
Pakistan and Israel have never had official relations, and successive Pakistani governments have repeatedly said there would be no recognition of Israel without a resolution of the Palestinian conflict.
This stands in contrast to most Arab countries, including the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Egypt and Jordan, which have established full diplomatic and trade relationships with Israel.
However, the two countries have maintained discreet unofficial ties for decades, with a British government report in 2013 suggesting Israel had sold Pakistan military technology, which was publicly denied by both countries.
A delegation of Pakistani-Americans visited Israel in 2022, provoking outrage in Pakistan, with then-prime minister Imran Khan accusing them of seeking to undermine the country’s diplomatic stance on the Israel-Palestine issue.
By Staff Writer
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has arrested five men who worked as car washers and helpers in Israel for four years, violating a ban on travel to the Jewish state, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) said on Wednesday.
The men, from Mirpurkhas in southern Sindh province, paid an Israeli agent between 300,000 and 400,000 rupees ($1,800-$2,400) each to arrange their travel and employment in Tel Aviv, FIA Sindh Director Abdul Hameed Bhutto said.
“They sent their salaries to their relatives in Pakistan through Western Union,” he said. “They stayed in Tel Aviv for four to seven years.”
Pakistan does not recognise Israel and bars its citizens from visiting the country. Pakistani passports state they are valid for all countries except Israel.
Bhutto said the men were arrested after an inquiry based on a report of foreign remittances from Israel.
They left Karachi for Kenya on Pakistani passports in November 2016 and then flew to Israel via Jordan with the help of the agent, who was also their relative and an Israeli citizen, he said. They returned to Pakistan in December 2019 using the same route.
“They violated multiple laws by traveling to a country that is not recognised by Pakistan and using Pakistani passports that are not valid for Israel,” Bhutto said.
The FIA said it had registered cases against the men under the Emigration Ordinance 1979, the Passport Act 1974, and the Pakistan Penal Code. They face up to seven years in prison if convicted.
The arrests come months after reports of Pakistani goods being sold in Israeli markets stirred controversy in Pakistan. The reports followed a claim by a New York-based group of American Jews that the first shipment of “Pakistan-origin food products” had been offloaded in Israel in April.
The American Jewish Congress said the transaction involved Pakistani-Jewish businessman Fishel Benkhald, based in Karachi, and three Israeli businessmen from Jerusalem and Haifa.
Benkhald also shared on Twitter a video of dates, dried fruit and spices he “exported” from Pakistan to the Israeli market.
The Pakistani government has denied any such exports, reiterating that there had been “no change” in its policy regarding Israel.
Pakistan and Israel have never had official relations, and successive Pakistani governments have repeatedly said there would be no recognition of Israel without a resolution of the Palestinian conflict.
This stands in contrast to most Arab countries, including the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Egypt and Jordan, which have established full diplomatic and trade relationships with Israel.
However, the two countries have maintained discreet unofficial ties for decades, with a British government report in 2013 suggesting Israel had sold Pakistan military technology, which was publicly denied by both countries.
A delegation of Pakistani-Americans visited Israel in 2022, provoking outrage in Pakistan, with then-prime minister Imran Khan accusing them of seeking to undermine the country’s diplomatic stance on the Israel-Palestine issue.
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