Afghanistan\u2019s capital has become an unlikely pandemic transit route for Pakistanis desperate to reach the riches of Saudi Arabia despite deteriorating security and the threat of bomb blasts.
\nWith most Gulf flights from Pakistan cancelled as the country is added to a growing number of coronavirus travel blacklists, thousands of workers are hoping to reach the kingdom after first spending two weeks in Kabul.
\n\u201cI\u2019m a little bit worried,\u201d said Sohaib Siddiqui, a 31-year-old electrical engineer from Lahore, in line at the Afghanistan embassy in Islamabad.
\nBut he added that he was \u201cwilling to take risks\u201d, explaining that a job in Saudi Arabia would allow him to send between Rs50,000 and Rs100,000 a month to his family of three.
\nThe Gulf countries have long been a vital avenue of employment for Pakistanis, who send back billions of dollars in remittances every year, propping up the cash-strapped economy.
\nIn the past month alone, tens of thousands of Pakistanis have applied for transit visas at the Afghan embassy in Islamabad, according to an official at the mission.
\nOver the past week, hundreds have camped overnight to submit their paperwork.
\nThe plan is not foolproof, however, with the one direct flight between Afghanistan and Saudi Arabia cancelled in recent days, according to a travel agent in Kabul. Special flights were available only to workers who already had Saudi residency \u2014 at a cost of around $1,300.
\nTravel woes
\nThe influx of travellers into Kabul comes as US troops are pulling out of the country following nearly 20 years of war, with violence surging.
\nLarge swathes of the population in Kabul also nurture a seething hatred for their Pakistani neighbours, with authorities there long blamed for supporting the Taliban insurgency.
\n\u201cWe have no choice, what should we do?\u201d said Tanweer Ahmad while waiting in line in Islamabad to file his application for an Afghan visa.
\nAt a diagnostic centre in Kabul, doctors have been mobbed with Pakistanis desperate for the Covid-19 tests needed to enter Saudi Arabia, doubling demand at the lab in recent weeks.
\n\u201cSaudis and the Pakistanis trust Afghan laboratories,\u201d beamed Sediqqullah Safi, a doctor at the testing centre, saying he hoped the new batch of visitors would inject much-needed money into the capital\u2019s slumping economy.
\n\u201cThey come here with benefits \u2014 they\u2019re spending money on shopping, transportation, and of course on coronavirus tests.\u201d
\nFor Anwar Khan \u2014 who spent two weeks in the capital and is hoping to fly to Saudi Arabia soon \u2014 the unnerving trip has been worth it.
\n\u201cOne would of course worry about security,\u201d said Khan. \u201cThank God there has been no problem [for] us so far.\u201d
\nFor those still hoping to make it to Afghanistan \u2014 where virus cases are also rising following Eidul Fitr \u2014 any future change in the rules might make the trip impossible, or leave them stranded in Kabul after exhausting their savings.
\n\u201cI have small kids at home and no other source of income,\u201d said Liaquat Ali. \u201cWe are taking a big risk going to Afghanistan. There are no guarantees.\u201c<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Afghanistan\u2019s capital has become an unlikely pandemic transit route for Pakistanis desperate to reach the riches of Saudi Arabia despite deteriorating security and the threat of bomb blasts. With most Gulf flights from Pakistan cancelled as the country is added to a growing number of coronavirus travel blacklists, thousands of workers are hoping to reach […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-194378","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-world"],"yoast_head":"\n