43 Pakistani prisoners in Sri Lanka to return home

ISLAMABAD: Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi’s success on the diplomatic front will bring 43 Pakistani citizens back home from Sri Lankan jails.

In a high-level meeting on Friday with Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner Admiral (retd) Ravindra Chandra Srivijay Gunaratne, it was agreed upon to immediately repatriate 43 Pakistani citizens imprisoned in Sri Lanka.

The Ministry of Home Affairs had been working with the Sri Lankan authorities for the past month to bring back these prisoners.

The Sri Lankan high commissioner assured all possible cooperation in this regard. Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi thanked the Sri Lankan high commissioner for his support in the matter, the official news agency reported.

The arrangements for the return of Pakistani prisoners will be finalised in a few days, Naqvi said in a statement.

The minister said that relations between Sri Lanka and Pakistan have been going from strength to strength over the past seven decades. He said that Pakistan wants to further develop mutual relations in various fields with Siri Lanka.

In the meeting, it was agreed upon to take immediate steps to return the prisoners on both sides to their respective countries.

Issues of mutual interest and the development of bilateral relations were also discussed in the meeting. Both sides agreed to increase cooperation in the field of security and counter-narcotics.