The Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority (PCAA) stated on Thursday that it was unaware of any Israeli nationals on a flydubai flight that made an emergency landing in Karachi earlier this week.
Flydubai flight FZ-569, traveling from Dubai to Colombo, Sri Lanka, made an emergency landing at Jinnah International Airport on Wednesday after a woman on board fell ill.
According to The Times of Israel, the flight carried two Israeli citizens, as reported by the Israeli foreign ministry. The ministry claimed it had “worked, together with others, to ensure the welfare” of the Israelis.
However, PCAA spokesperson Saifullah Khan said Pakistani authorities were not informed about the presence of Israeli nationals on the flight. He said: “The report about flydubai flight 569 only mentioned that it was en route to Colombo from Dubai, and a woman’s condition worsened, causing it to land at 11 pm in Karachi. Unfortunately, she expired. Her body was sent to Khidmat-e-Khalq Foundation in Malir, and the plane departed at 3 am. The report did not specify the number of passengers or their nationalities.”
The deceased woman was a Sri Lankan national, Khan confirmed, and her body was later flown to Sri Lanka on another flight.
Pakistan does not recognize Israel or maintain diplomatic relations with it, advocating for an independent Palestinian state based on “internationally agreed parameters” and the pre-1967 borders with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital. Since the beginning of Israel’s war on Gaza in October last year, Pakistan has repeatedly raised the issue at the United Nations and the OIC, calling for international powers and multilateral bodies to stop Israeli military actions in Palestinian territories.
Pakistan’s foreign office spokesperson, Mumtaz Zahra Baloch, told The Independent’s Urdu service that the flydubai flight was diverted to Karachi due to a medical emergency. “The Sri Lankan woman aboard the plane was examined by a medical team and declared dead, after which the body was taken off the plane,” she said. “No other passenger got off the plane.”
