Pakistan’s envoy to Tehran stated on Wednesday that a bus incident in Yazd city, Iran, overnight night resulted in the deaths of at least 28 Pakistani pilgrims and the injuries of another 23. “Last night in Yazd city, a bus tragedy claimed the lives of 28 Pakistani Zairean pilgrims who were traveling for religious purposes. Mudassir Tipu, Pakistan’s ambassador to Iran, stated in a post on X that “an additional 23 are injured.”
The bus flipped near the Dehshir-Taftan checkpoint in Yazd on Tuesday night, and it later caught fire, according to Iran’s Mehr Agency. The pilgrims from Pakistan were traveling from Iran to Iraq to attend the Arbaeen celebration, which commemorates the 40th day of Imam Husain’s (PBUH) mourning. The chief of crisis management for Yazd province, Ali Malekzadeh, was quoted by Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency as stating that 14 of the injured were in critical condition.
According to him, six of the injured had been released from the hospital, and the remaining injured were being treated at different hospitals in Abarkuh, Taft, and Yazd. Malekzadeh continued, “There were 17 men and 11 women among the dead.” He said that an airplane was being arranged by the Yazd Governorate, in cooperation with the Iranian Foreign Ministry, to return the dead and injured to Pakistan.
Crisis body activated to bring the deceased back home: Mofa
The Crisis Management Unit has been created, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Mofa), to aid with the repatriation of the accident victims. “We convey our sincere condolences and sympathies to the families of Pakistani pilgrims who perished in a tragic vehicle accident in Yazd, Iran,” a press release from Mofa stated.
It also stated that the Pakistani consul in Zahidan has been charged with visiting the accident scene and determining the ground situation at the behest of Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar on his orders. The statement went on, “They will also work with local authorities to arrange the repatriation of dead bodies to Pakistan, where the majority of the deceased are Sindh province residents, and to provide medical relief to the injured.”
“To expedite the retrieval and repatriation of the dead remains and facilitate medical treatment for the injured, our Consul in Zahidan and our Ambassador of Pakistan in Tehran are in communication with the Iranian authorities in Tehran and Zahidan,” Mofa stated.
Pakistan’s envoy to Iran, Tipu, said, “I have no words to express grief but I can assure [you] that I will do my very best for repatriation of those who passed away […] and look after the injured ones.”
Condolences abound
President Asif Ali Zardari sent Mofa a directive to repatriate the deceased and promptly assist the injured after expressing his sorrow over the accident. The PPP, the president’s party, released a statement on social media platform X stating, “The President expressed his regret over the loss of precious lives.” He prayed for the departed one last time. Shehbaz Sharif, the prime minister, expressed his “deep sadness at the loss of lives” on X.
PM Shehbaz said he has instructed Pakistan’s Mission in Tehran to provide the affected families with all available support, while also offering prayers for the relatives of the deceased and the quick recovery of the injured.
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