Thousands of Pakistani Shias out of UAE overnight, suspicion of Iran link increases problems

New Delhi:The spark of the ongoing war in the Middle East has now started scorching the lives of foreign workers living in Gulf countries. Thousands of Pakistani Shia Muslims, who have been living in the UAE for decades and contributing to the economy there, are suddenly being fired from their jobs and deported from the country.

There was a stir in the community

The situation is so bad that these migrants are neither being allowed to withdraw their life savings from bank accounts nor are they getting time to pack their belongings. This action, taking place overnight without any prior notice, has created a stir in the Shia community of Pakistan. Seeing the seriousness of the matter, the international human rights organization ‘Human Rights Watch’ has also started investigating this entire incident.

The process of eviction suddenly intensified

According to a report by global news agency Reuters, such arrests against migrants have increased after February 28 this year. This was the same time when America and Israel started air strikes on Iran. In response, Iran also fired missiles and drones towards UAE.

strict security restrictions

Amidst the increased strategic and security tensions in the Gulf region, the UAE government has tightened security restrictions within the country. Shia organizations of Pakistan allege that people of their sect are being deliberately targeted in the name of geopolitical security.

Statistics are telling the scary reality

According to the official database of Pakistani Shia political organization ‘Majlis Wahdat-e-Muslimeen’, since February 28, about 7,500 Pakistani Shias have been forcibly sent back to Pakistan from UAE. Spokespeople of the organization say that this is only the figure that has been recorded, whereas the actual number could be much higher. Local leaders in Pakistan’s Shia-dominated Kurram district have confirmed that more than 1,500 people from their area alone have returned empty-handed from Dubai and Abu Dhabi in the past few weeks.

plight of migrants

The ordeal narrated by the people who were victims of this action is extremely shocking. According to media reports, after examining the immigration and flight documents of the 103 deported people, it was found that dozens of people were detained directly from their workplaces or homes. A 41-year-old victim, resident of Chakwal, said that during his detention, UAE security agencies conducted a thorough investigation of his salary and banking transactions.

What did the victim tell?

After this he was directly asked, do you give any kind of fund or donation to Iran? Another victim said that he was arrested without any legal warrant, his phone was taken away and after being kept in a dark room for 9 days, he was taken straight to the airport and deported.

The accused was detained

Another case is that of Ali Ahmed Naqvi and his wife Quratul Ain, a couple working in the technology sector. Naqvi’s wife was detained when she went to the administrative office to update her visa to change her job. Naqvi was sent back to the airport along with 93 other Shia migrants in the same plane.

Stand of UAE and Pakistan government

The UAE Foreign Ministry has maintained complete silence on this sensitive and major diplomatic issue and has not answered any questions. The Pakistani Home Ministry has publicly issued a balanced statement saying that the UAE has not expelled anyone on the basis of their sect but this action has been taken due to violation of local visa rules.

what is the story behind the scenes

The story behind the scenes is something different. A senior government official in Islamabad has admitted on the condition of confidentiality that the government is internally ‘seriously reviewing’ the circumstances arising from the sudden return of such a large number of Shia workers.