38 Pakistanis Arrested in Iran for Illegal Border Crossing


TEHRAN (Tasnim) – The Iranian border guards detained 38 Pakistani nationals after they crossed shared borders between the two countries illegally.

The Pakistanis, who intended to enter Iran from the southeastern border of Taftan, were arrested and handed over to Pakistani border authorities due to the lack of visas and entry permission.

Each year, a large number of Pakistani nationals attempt to illegally immigrate to Europe because of their country’s poor economic conditions and are arrested in Iran or Turkey and handed over to the Pakistani authorities.

According to the commander of the border guards in the southeastern province of Sistan and Balouchestan, nearly 50,000 Pakistani pilgrims have entered the province legally this year to participate in the massive mourning ceremonies marking Arbaeen.

On Tuesday, millions of black-clad Shiite Muslims gathered in the holy city of Karbala for the Arbaeen religious commemoration, the largest annual gathering of people anywhere on earth.

Arbaeen, which is one of the largest religious gatherings in the world, comes 40 days after Ashura, the martyrdom anniversary of the third Shiite Imam, Imam Hussein (AS).