ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday chaired a high-level security meeting to assess rapidly evolving regional developments, including contingency plans to evacuate Pakistani citizens from Iran, as Islamabad stepped up diplomatic outreach amid escalating Middle East hostilities.
“On the instructions of the Prime Minister, steps were also reviewed to evacuate Pakistani citizens from Iran,” the Prime Minister’s Office said in a statement following the meeting, adding that relevant institutions had been directed to remain on high alert.
The review came as tensions surged after coordinated US-Israeli airstrikes on Iran, followed by Iranian retaliatory attacks across the Gulf. Iranian authorities have confirmed the killing of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in the strikes, a development that has further heightened regional uncertainty.
Alongside security deliberations, Sharif held a series of telephone calls with regional leaders, stressing restraint, respect for international law and renewed diplomacy.
In a call with Bahrain’s King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, the prime minister discussed Iran’s retaliatory attacks on Gulf states and warned that “unprovoked acts of aggression only escalate the situation and threaten the peace and stability of the entire region,” according to the Prime Minister’s Office. He assured Bahrain of Pakistan’s firm solidarity and urged maximum restraint.
Sharif also spoke with Jordan’s King Abdullah II, exchanging views on what officials described as serious regional developments following the Israeli strikes on Iran and subsequent attacks on Jordan and other regional countries.
PM Sharif expressed deep concern over the escalation and emphasized the urgent need for de-escalation, dialogue and regional coordination to preserve stability.
Separately, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar spoke with Oman’s Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr bin Hamad Al Busaidi. Both sides voiced serious concern over the unfolding crisis and underscored the need for restraint and continued diplomatic engagement, agreeing to remain in close contact.
During the security meeting, the prime minister was also briefed on Afghanistan-related developments and Pakistan’s internal preparedness, as tensions persist along the western border.
Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said Pakistani forces continue operations launched earlier this week in response to unprovoked Afghan Taliban fire across the Pakistan-Afghanistan border. In a post on X, Tarar said Pakistani forces had inflicted heavy losses, including militant casualties and the destruction of multiple positions, claims that could not be independently verified.
The meeting was attended by Chief of Defence Forces Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, federal ministers, senior civil officials and military commanders.
