Pakistani companies showcase precious gemstones, minerals at international expo in China

Islamabad: Pakistan’s Communications Minister Abdul Aleem Khan has said that Islamabad aims to emerge as a key transit hub connecting the economies of South and Central Asia, state-run media reported on Sunday. 

Pakistan has been working to strengthen its position as a key trade and transit hub, connecting landlocked Central Asian states to the global market through its strategic location. Last year saw a surge in visits, investment discussions and economic activity between Pakistan and Central Asian nations as well as Gulf countries. 

Khan was speaking at the “Russia-Islamic World: Kazan Forum” being held from May 13-18 in the country’s Kazan region. This forum is the main platform for economic cooperation between Russia and Islamic countries as per its website. 

“Minister for Communications Abdul Aleem Khan says Pakistan aims to emerge as a key transit hub, bridging the economies of South Asia and Central Asia,” state broadcaster Radio Pakistan reported. 

Addressing the closing session of the Kazan Forum, Khan noted the Gwadar Port in southwestern Pakistan has already started shipment and cargo services. He added that Islamabad intends to facilitate landlocked Central Asia’s access to warm waters.

Khan spoke about Pakistan’s strategic plans to connect its Karachi, Quetta and Gwadar cities with Central Asia and Europe through road networks. 

“Abdul Aleem Khan welcomed the holding of the Kazan Forum and reaffirmed Pakistan’s strong commitment to playing an active role in regional development,” the report said. 

Pakistan’s recent push to engage Central Asian countries and the Middle East takes place as Islamabad seeks to escape a prolonged macroeconomic crisis that has drained its country of financial resources and weakened its balance of payment position and currency. 

Islamabad has sought to attract international investment in key economic sectors since it narrowly avoided a sovereign default in 2023 before a last-gasp International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout helped it avoid that. 

KARACHI: A year after a brutal act of violence left her maimed and terrified, Cammie the camel is finally getting a second chance at life.

The young camel had wandered into a field in Sindh’s Sanghar district in search of food when a local landlord, enraged by the intrusion, hacked off her front leg. Her owner, a poor peasant, lacked the means and power to seek justice, even though livestock like Cammie often represent the sole source of livelihood for families in the region.

Despite the owner’s refusal to press charges, the state pursued the case under Pakistan’s animal cruelty laws, registering a case and arresting five people after widespread outrage.

Now, Cammie is in the final stages of her recovery, with a custom-made prosthetic leg ready to help restore her mobility.

“She was a very scared, nervous little child. The kind of child who would start screaming if she saw a new person,” Sheema Khan, manager of the shelter where Cammie has spent the past year, told Arab News.

Animal cruelty is not rare in Pakistan. Last year, another camel in Sindh was found dead with all four legs amputated. Animal rights groups have also highlighted the mistreatment of other creatures, such as bears that are illegally captured, tortured and forced to perform.

While Pakistan has animal welfare legislation, enforcement remains weak, sporadic and hampered by limited resources.

“There was always a question in Cammie’s eyes: ‘Why did this happen to me? I had only gone to find food because I was hungry,’” Khan said, adding that it was heartbreaking to see her in pain whenever she tried to stand.

The shelter, which has been caring for Cammie throughout her recovery, received early assistance from Pakistani startup Bioniks, which took precise measurements of her limbs to prepare for the prosthetic. These were then sent to the United States, where a specialist at the Virginia-based company Bionic Pets crafted the custom leg.

With the prosthetic in their possession, the shelter team hopes Cammie will soon walk, run and play like other animals around her.

When Cammie first arrived at the shelter, she received antibiotics, pain relief and a clean enclosure. But her recovery extended beyond the physical.

“Whether it’s a human or an animal, wounds and illnesses don’t go away until the mind is healed first,” said Dr. Babar Hussain, the veterinarian overseeing her treatment. “So first, we focused on her mental healing, and only after that did we start her treatment.”

Her wound, which was infected and bleeding, has now fully healed.

“She is completely fit now,” Hussain said. “The entire wound is closed, and new skin has grown over it. There’s nothing to worry about.”

To help Cammie emotionally, the shelter introduced another young female camel, Callie, as her companion.

“We brought in Callie so that seeing her would motivate Cammie, encourage her to try to play,” Khan said. “Now, Callie and Cammie live together.”

As luck would have it, Callie was an orphan around the same age, in need of a peaceful home. Their bond proved transformational.

“The very night we brought Callie in, Cammie stood up with her. That night, we saw Cammie standing, without any support, alongside her friend Callie.”

Asked when her team would give Cammie her new leg, Khan said: “If it were up to us, we would immediately fit Cammie with the prosthetic leg and tell her: ‘Cammie! Now you can walk on all four legs. Stand up, come on, run!’”

“But now, everything depends on Cammie — on when she’s ready for this,” she added.

As Cammie trains with a harness and prepares mentally for her new limb, the team is hopeful and excited to witness the movement, which Khan says will arrive soon.

“You can walk on all four legs,” she said she would tell Cammie once she starts walking. “You’re free to go wherever you want, to play, to run and jump.”