Ambassador in touch with Russian authorities on Fakhr-e-Alam’s detention: FO

ISLAMABAD: The Foreign Office Spokesman on Monday said Pakistan’s ambassador to Russia was in touch with local authorities over the matter of detention of singer Fakhr-e-Alam due to his expired visa.

Spokesman Muhammad Faisal in a Tweet said the ambassador had also spoken to Fakhr-e-Alam and hoped that the problem would be resolved soon.

Fakhr-e-Alam was detained at the Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk Airport in Russia after he landed in the country with an expired visa while journeying across the globe on his project ‘Mission Parwaaz’.

The singer said his visa expired as his flight got delayed. Subsequently, the Russian authorities detained him at the airport, he added.

He appealed to the government of Pakistan and the Pakistani embassy in Moscow to help secure his release so that he could continue his journey to Alaska. He said he don’t want to end his Mission Parwaaz.

Famous TV actor Faisal Qureshi in a Facebook post wrote: “Message from Fakhre Alam … Bro please tweet on my behalf. I am being detained at Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk airport because my visa expired 2 hours [ago] and date changed. They are forcing me to turn back to Japan. I cannot go to Japan because I had single entry visa. I appeal to the Pak[istan] govt to request Russian government to allow me to continue my journey to Alaska. I don’t want to give up Mission Parwaaz. I need Pakistan’s support to carry on our flag to finish this. I have been in a room without food or water. No Wi-Fi. They didn’t give me my phone for six hours. I NEED HELP .”