One hundred and thirty Sri Lankans who were stranded in Pakistan as a result of the lockdown and the loss of occupation due the spread of Covind19 in Pakistan, were repatriated today by a special Sri Lankan Airlines flight UL 1181/2 from Lahore and Karachi airports The Ministry of Foreign Relations of Sri Lanka and the Sri Lanka’s High Commission in Islamabad, supported by the Consulate General in Karachi coordinated the repatriation arrangements as approved by the Presidential Secretariat. This is the second such group to leave Pakistan after the first group that left on 21st April 2020, comprising mainly of university students and government officials who had arrived in Pakistan for training.
Sri Lanka authorities received strong support and assistance from the Pakistani authorities in this operation.74 Sri Lankans boarded the aircraft from Karachi-Muhammed Ali Jinnah International Airport, while 56 boarded from Allama Iqbal International Airport/Lahore. Unlike last instance, all passengers were subjected to PCR tests before boarding the Aircraft in Pakistan and they were scheduled to be tested again on arrival at Katunayake Sri Lanka, before transporting to quarantine purposes.
The High Commission of Sri Lanka
Islamabad