logo
Three held in fake ID, visa scam

Three held in fake ID, visa scam

Express Tribune22-05-2025

The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA)'s Counter-Terrorism Wing Islamabad claimed on Thursday to have arrested three more suspects who were involved in issuing fake Pakistani identity cards, machine-readable passports, and Saudi work visas to Afghan nationals and other foreigners.
The Agency has so far arrested five members of the organised gang. Muhammad Alam Zeb, Asif Khan, and Haroon Rashid were arrested on a tip-off.
The gang was found to be facilitating Afghan nationals in fraudulently obtaining Pakistani CNICs, passports, and Saudi work visas. Alam Zeb was involved in issuing Saudi work visas on Pakistani passports to 31 Afghan nationals, Asif Khan to four Afghan nationals, and Haroon Rashid to 58 Afghan nationals.
Two other suspects, Muhammad Ishaq Khan and Syed Ehsan Shah, were arrested on Tuesday last. Investigations revealed that Ehsan Shah facilitated 580 Afghan nationals, while Ishaq Khan arranged Saudi work visas for 22 Afghan nationals, all using Pakistani passports.
In total, these suspects have been accused of fraudulently processing Saudi work visas for 693 Afghan nationals using Pakistani documents.

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

FIA 'uncovers' multibillion-rupee scam
FIA 'uncovers' multibillion-rupee scam

Express Tribune

timea day ago

  • Express Tribune

FIA 'uncovers' multibillion-rupee scam

The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Commercial Banking Circle Islamabad has registered a case involving a multibillion-rupee scam operated through call centres and arrested a woman and a bank manager. According to sources, a network of call centres was revealed in a State Bank of Pakistan report, which highlighted suspicious transactions worth billions of rupees from the accounts of 36 companies. Following an inquiry, the FIA filed a case and arrested a woman named Nida and a private bank manager allegedly linked to the network. The network reportedly includes over six individuals, among them two Chinese nationals. Sources indicate that the criminal enterprise collected funds through illegal online activities, including gambling, loan apps, call centres, fraudulent investment schemes, and pornographic content platforms. These funds were then funneled abroad using various channels such as hawala and hundi, and converted into cryptocurrency. Investigations are also underway into potential involvement of FIA and cyber crime officials. When contacted by The Express Tribune for comment, the FIA spokesperson did not respond. However, a senior FIA officer, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed the registration of the case and ongoing raids for further arrests.

Afghan women UN staff targeted with threats, told to ‘stay home' in Kabul
Afghan women UN staff targeted with threats, told to ‘stay home' in Kabul

Express Tribune

timea day ago

  • Express Tribune

Afghan women UN staff targeted with threats, told to ‘stay home' in Kabul

Afghan women working for the United Nations in Kabul have been threatened by unidentified men because of their jobs, the organisation and several women told AFP on Thursday. PHOTO: AFP Listen to article Afghan women working for the United Nations in Kabul have been threatened by unidentified men because of their jobs, the organisation and several women told AFP on Thursday. Multiple women working for various UN agencies told AFP on condition of anonymity they had been threatened on the street and over the phone by men warning them to 'stay home'. UN staffer Huda — not her real name — said that for weeks she has been bombarded with messages abusing her for 'working with foreigners'. 'The messages keep coming and they are always harassing us … saying, 'Don't let me see you again, or else',' the young woman told AFP. She said her office had advised her to work from home until further notice. The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) confirmed that UN staff had been threatened. 'Several United Nations female national staff members in the Afghan capital Kabul have been subjected to threats by unidentified individuals related to their work with the UN,' it said in a statement. Considering the threats 'extremely serious', the UN has taken 'interim' measures 'to ensure the safety and security of staff members', it added. The Taliban government, accused by the UN of imposing a 'gender apartheid' against women since returning to power in 2021, has denied any involvement. Interior ministry spokesman Abdul Mateen Qani said such threats were a 'crime' and that police would take action. UNAMA said the authorities had opened an investigation. Since seizing power in 2021, the Taliban authorities have severely restricted Afghan women from working and it is the only country in the world where women are banned from education beyond primary school. The government in 2022 banned women from working for domestic and international NGOs, which was extended to include the UN's offices in the country the following year. The policy has some exceptions, including for women working in healthcare and education, and has not been consistently enforced. The UN has previously called the policy 'deeply discriminatory'. Selsela, in her 30s, said that while returning from the office last week, she was approached by unknown men who told her she should be 'ashamed' and that she must 'stay home'. 'They said, 'We told you nicely this time, but next time you'll have another thing coming',' she told AFP. 'I was very scared,' she said, explaining how she struggles to work efficiently from home in a country where electricity and internet are unreliable. 'The situation for women is getting worse every day.' Another woman, Rahila, said she and two other women colleagues were stopped by men while travelling home in a UN vehicle and told not to go to the office anymore. 'They said, 'Don't you know that you are not allowed?',' Rahila said, adding that she has also received threatening messages from unknown numbers. 'I am very worried, I need my job and my salary,' she said. Three-quarters of Afghanistan's population of some 45 million people struggle to meet their daily needs, according to the UN, with the country facing one of the world's worst humanitarian crises.

Trump imposes new US travel ban on 12 nations
Trump imposes new US travel ban on 12 nations

Express Tribune

time2 days ago

  • Express Tribune

Trump imposes new US travel ban on 12 nations

Afghan refugees queue outside a distribution and donation center at Liberty Village on Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst in New Jersey, U.S., December 2, 2021. REUTERS/Barbara Davidson/Pool/File photo Listen to article US President Donald Trump signed a proclamation on Wednesday banning the nationals of 12 countries from entering the United States, saying the move was needed to protect against "foreign terrorists" and other security threats. The directive is part of an immigration crackdown Trump launched this year at the start of his second term, which has also included the deportation to El Salvador of hundreds of Venezuelans suspected of being gang members and efforts to deny enrollments of some foreign students and deport others. The countries affected by the latest travel ban are Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen. The entry of people from seven other countries: Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela, will be partially restricted. "We will not allow people to enter our country who wish to do us harm," Trump said in a video posted on X. He said the list could be revised and new countries could be added. "We cannot have open migration from any country where we cannot safely and reliably vet and screen... That is why today I am signing a new executive order placing travel restrictions on countries including Yemen, Somalia, Haiti, Libya, and numerous others." –President Trump — The White House (@WhiteHouse) June 4, 2025 The proclamation is effective on June 9, 2025 at 12:01 am EDT (0401 GMT). Who does it apply to? The proclamation states that the full and partial travel bans apply to foreign nationals of the designated countries who: - are outside the United States on June 9, and - do not have a valid visa on June 9 The proclamation also states: No immigrant or non-immigrant visa issued before June 9 "shall be revoked pursuant to this proclamation." Are there any exceptions to the trave bans? Exceptions to the travel ban include: - Any lawful permanent resident of the United States - Dual nationals - Diplomats traveling on valid non-immigrant visas - Athletes or members of an athletic team and immediate relatives, traveling for the World Cup, Olympics, or other major sporting event - Immediate family immigrant visas - Adoptions - Afghan Special Immigrant Visas - Special Immigrant Visas for United States government employees - Immigrant visas for ethnic and religious minorities facing persecution in Iran During his first term in office, Trump announced a ban on travelers from seven Muslim-majority nations, a policy that went through several iterations before it was upheld by the Supreme Court in 2018. Former President Joe Biden, a Democrat who succeeded Trump, repealed that ban on nationals from Iran, Libya, Somalia, Syria and Yemen in 2021, calling it "a stain on our national conscience." Trump said the countries subject to the most severe restrictions were determined to harbor a "large-scale presence of terrorists," fail to cooperate on visa security and have an inability to verify travelers' identities, inadequate record-keeping of criminal histories and high rates of visa overstays in the United States. "We cannot have open migration from any country where we cannot safely and reliably vet and screen those who seek to enter the United States," Trump said. He cited Sunday's incident in Boulder, Colorado in which an Egyptian national, Mohamed Sabry Soliman, has been charged in the attack. Federal officials said Soliman had overstayed his tourist visa and had an expired work permit - although Egypt is not on the list of countries facing travel limits. Somalia immediately pledged to work with the US to address security issues. "Somalia values its longstanding relationship with the United States and stands ready to engage in dialogue to address the concerns raised," Dahir Hassan Abdi, the Somali ambassador to the United States, said in a statement. Venezuelan Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello, a close ally of President Nicolas Maduro, responded on Wednesday evening by describing the US government as fascist and warning Venezuelans of being in the US. "The truth is being in the United States is a big risk for anybody, not just for Venezuelans ... They persecute our countrymen, our people for no reason." A spokesperson for the Taliban-led Afghan foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Pakistan's foreign ministry did not immediately reply to a request for comment on how it would handle the thousands of Afghans waiting in Islamabad who had been in the pipeline for US resettlement. Calls early on Thursday to the spokesperson of Myanmar's military government were not answered. The foreign ministry of Laos did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Trump campaigned on a tough border strategy and previewed his plan in an October 2023 speech, pledging to restrict people from Gaza, Libya, Somalia, Syria, Yemen and "anywhere else that threatens our security." Trump issued an executive order on January 20 requiring intensified security vetting of any foreigners seeking admission to the US to detect national security threats. That order directed several cabinet members to submit a list of countries from which travel should be partly or fully suspended because their "vetting and screening information is so deficient."

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store