Islamabad, March 10 (IANS) Pakistan’s Minister of State for Law and Justice Barrister Aqeel Malik on Monday admitted that some travel restrictions may be introduced on Pakistani citizens by the new US administration led by President Donald Trump.
Malik noted that while the US has expressed concerns over the surge in terrorism-related incidents in Pakistan, Washington has till now not imposed an outright travel ban on Pakistanis.
Islamabad fears that, along with Afghanistan, Pakistan will also definitely feature in the list being prepared by the Trump administration to impose new travel ban based on a government review of security and vetting risks.
Earlier this month, the US Department of State, the Bureau of Consular Affairs, issued a travel advisory to its citizens which stated to reconsider travel to Pakistan due to terrorism and the potential for armed conflict. It advised US citizens not to travel to Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) provinces, which include the former Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), due to terrorism.
Terrorism and ongoing violence by extremist elements have led to indiscriminate attacks on civilians, as well as local military and police targets in Pakistan. Terrorists may attack with little or no warning, targeting transportation hubs, markets, shopping malls, military installations, airports, universities, tourist attractions, schools, hospitals, places of worship, and government facilities. Terrorists have targeted US diplomats and diplomatic facilities in the past, the advisory stated.
It further advised travellers to stay away from protest sites that can draw scrutiny from Pakistani security forces. US citizens have been detained for participating in protests and for posting content on social media perceived as critical of the Pakistani government, military, or officials. Internet and mobile phone service outages are also quite common, especially during protests.
This advisory followed the report of the Global Terrorism Index 2025, based on which Pakistan stands second in the world terrorism just behind Burkina Faso, and ahead of Syria.
–IANS
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