Evacuation of Pakistani citizens from Yemen | |
---|---|
Part of Yemeni Civil War (2014–present) | |
Type | Civil military operations |
Location | |
Planned by | Government of Pakistan Pakistan Navy |
Objective | Humanitarian relief |
Date | 26 March 2015 - 29 March 2015 |
Executed by | Pakistan International Airlines |
Outcome | Around 503 Pakistani citizens evacuated from Yemen |
The evacuation of Pakistani citizens was a civil-military combined effort by Pakistan to extract and evacuate overseas Pakistanis from war-torn areas of Yemen. [1]
According to Ministry of Human Resource Development of Pakistan, there were ~3,000 overseas Pakistanis residing in Yemen prior to the Saudi Arabian-led military intervention in Yemen. [2] In response to the Yemeni crises, the Pakistan government authorized the Pakistan International Airlines to launch of the special flights for aerial evacuation while the Pakistan Navy evacuated the remaining stranded Pakistanis with two frigates. [3]
Besides the evacuation of overseas Pakistanis, citizens of China and the United Kingdom among other countries were also evacuated by Pakistan. [4] Approximately, ~1,800 Pakistan's citizens were extracted from Yemen and safely returned to Pakistan, before the conflict escalated. [5] [6]
On 26 March 2015, the Saudi Arabian Ambassador to the United States, Adel al-Jubeir, announced the Saudi Arabia and the Gulf Cooperation Council launched a military operation against Shiite Houthi rebels in Yemen. [7] This was preceded by weeks of turmoil during which the Houthi guerrillas toppled the government of President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi and took over the large parts of the country. [7]
The Foreign Office had earlier instructed the Pakistani community to leave Yemen as the situation on ground could worsen. However, 3000 Pakistani citizens had not heeded the warnings and were trapped in Yemen. [2] The overseas Pakistanis began reaching out the country's news media, notably Geo News , ARY News , and Express News, appealing the government for a safe evacuation on 27 March. [8] The Pakistan Embassy in Yemen worked towards moving the Pakistani community from Aden to Sana'a; around 150 to 200 Pakistani citizens were still reportedly trapped in Aden. [9] The Pakistan Navy deployed the PNS Aslat missile frigate as well as special aerial missions by PIA were flown in Yemen. On March 29, 2015, the PIA flights evacuated ~503 Pakistani citizens from al-Hudaydah to Karachi. [10]
Month Data | Citizens of Pakistan | Evacuation | Foreign Nationals | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Number | Aerial evacuation | Naval evacuation | Foreign Nationals | Number | |
February–March | 1,800 [5] | Various sources | |||
31 March 2015 | 503 [10] | Boeing 747 | 0 | 0 | |
2 April 2015 | 176 [11] | Airbus A310 | 0 | 0 | |
3 April 2015 | 176 [12] | Airbus A310 | 0 | 0 | |
4 April 2015 | 150 [13] | PNS Shamsheer | 0 | 0 | |
5 April 2015 | 146 [14] 142 [14] | Airbus A310 | PNS Shamsheer | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | 11 [14] 8 [14] 4 [14] 5 [15] 2 [15] 1 [15] 1 [15] 1 [15] 1 [15] |
6 April 2015 | 134 [16] | Airbus A310 | ![]() ![]() | 2 2 | |
8 April 2015 | 51 (36 Pakistanis) | PNS Shamsheer | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() | 2 [17] 4 [17] 3 [17] 1 [17] 1 [17] 1 [17] | |
8 April 2015 | 119 [18] | PNS Aslat | |||
Total estimates | ~3,382 | ~52 | |||
The Pakistan Navy had deployed two Zulfiquar-class frigates for the evacuation: the PNS Shamsheer and PNS Aslat. [19]
Sanaa International Airport is the primary international airport of Yemen located in Sanaa, the capital of Yemen. It services Sanaa City as well as the entire population of the northern provinces of Yemen. Initially, a small passenger terminal was built in the 1970s. The runway is shared with the large Al-Dailami Air Base.
The Zulfiquar-class frigate, also known as F-22P or in English: Sword class, is a class of multi-mission guided missile frigates, in service with the Pakistan Navy. The class is based on an updated model of the Chinese design, the Type 053H3. The frigates were designed and built jointly in Hudong–Zhonghua Shipbuilding in China and the KS&EW Ltd. in Pakistan.
The Pakistan Naval Air Arm is the naval aviation and military administrative branch of the Pakistan Navy.
Operation Umeed-e-Nuh , was a naval humanitarian and a rescue operation in order to secure the merchant vessel MV Suez. The operation was carried out by the Pakistan Navy. The merchant vessel MV Suez operated under the flag of Panama and had an Egyptian owner, Red Sea Navigation. On 2 August 2010, the vessel was attacked and taken hostage by Somali pirates. Pakistani human rights activist Ansar Burney and Governor of Sindh, Dr Ishrat-ul-Ibad Khan managed to secure the release of the 22 men crew with a payout of US$2.1 million. The pirates released the vessel on 16 June 2011. However, multiple issues involving low fuel and deteriorated operational and material meant that the crew needed additional help from the Pakistan Navy.
The MV Kavaratti is a cruise ship that operates between the city of Kochi and the Lakshadweep islands. The ship was built in Hindustan shipyard Limited, Visakhapatnam and is painted white.
INS Sumitra is the fourth and last Saryu-class patrol vessel of the Indian Navy, designed and constructed by Goa Shipyard Limited. It is also the presidential yacht of India. It is designed to undertake fleet support operations, coastal and offshore patrolling, ocean surveillance and monitoring of sea lines of communications and offshore assets and escort duties.
PNS Zulfiquar (FFG-251) is the lead ship of the F-22P Zulfiquar-class guided missile frigates since 2009. She was designed and constructed by Chinese firm, Hudong-Zhonghua Shipbuilding in Shanghai, for the Pakistan Navy. The vessel's design is primarily influenced from the Type 053H3 frigate.
Military exercises are conducted by the Pakistan Armed Forces to increase combat readiness, and to identify problems in logistics, training, and current military doctrine. They also test the ability of units to work together. Lastly, they act as a visible expression of military might, which acts as a deterrent to potential enemy action. An important component of each exercise is the after-action assessment. Since 1989 the four branches services have increasingly begun coordinated exercises.
The following lists events that happened in 2015 in Yemen.
The Battle of Aden was a nearly four-month battle in 2015 for the control of Aden, Yemen, between Houthis rebels and Yemen Army forces loyal to Ali Abdullah Saleh on one side, and Yemen Army units loyal to Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi and Southern Movement militias on the other side.
The Yemeni civil war is an ongoing multilateral civil war that began in late 2014 mainly between the Rashad al-Alimi-led Presidential Leadership Council and the Mahdi al-Mashat-led Supreme Political Council, along with their supporters and allies. Both claim to constitute the official government of Yemen.
Operation Raahat was an operation of the Indian Armed Forces to evacuate Indian citizens and foreign nationals from Yemen during the 2015 military intervention by Saudi Arabia and its allies in that country during the Yemeni Crisis. The evacuation by sea began on 1 April 2015 from the port of Aden. The air evacuation by the Indian Air Force and Air India commenced on 3 April 2015 from Sana'a. More than 4,640 Indian citizens in Yemen were evacuated along with 960 foreign nationals from 41 countries. The air evacuation ended on 9 April 2015 while the evacuation by sea ended on 11 April 2015.
International reactions to the Saudi-led intervention in Yemen of 2015 were mixed. Most other Arab League nations and several Western governments backed the Saudi Arabia-led military coalition, but other governments warned against an escalation in the violent situation in Yemen.
MV Corals is a cruise ship that operates between the city of Cochin and the Lakshadweep islands. The ship was built by Colombo Dockyard in Sri Lanka with Norway-based Global Maritime Brevik. The then Union Minister of Shipping, Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Jairam Gadkari, dedicated the ship on January 10, 2015, to the nation.
PNS Moawin (A39), is a fleet replenishment tanker currently in service with the Pakistan Navy. Designed by the Turkish firm, STM, she was built and constructed by the Karachi Shipyard and Engineering Works in Karachi, Pakistan. Moawin is noted for its displacement, being the largest warship ever built in Pakistan.
PNS Khaibar (DDG-183) was a Tariq-class destroyer of the Pakistan Navy between 1994 and 2022.
PNS Tippu Sultan (DDG-185), a Tariq-class destroyer, served in the Pakistan Navy after it was acquired in 1994. Her design was based on the British Type 21 frigate, and previously served in the Royal Navy as HMS Avenger as a general purpose frigate.
PNS Shamsheer (FFG-252) is the second F-22P Zulfiquar-class guided missile frigate currently in active service with the Pakistan Navy since her commissioning in 2009.
PNS Aslat (FFG-254) is a F-22P Zulfiquar-class guided missile frigate currently in active service with the Pakistan Navy since her commission in 2013.