Broad Peak Tragedy: Pakistani Climber Sohail Sakhi Laid to Rest in Hunza
Hundreds attend funeral prayers in Aliabad as Gilgit-Baltistan mourns the death of the 30-year-old mountaineer
Family members and residents attend the funeral of Pakistani climber Sohail Sakhi in Aliabad, Hunza
ALIABAD, August 16, 2026 — Pakistani climber Sohail Sakhi was laid to rest in his hometown of Aliabad in Gilgit-Baltistan’s Hunza district on Sunday, following funeral prayers attended by a large number of people.
Sakhi was among a 10-member expedition that went missing on July 30 after a deadly avalanche struck Broad Peak, one of the world’s highest mountains.
Rescuers recovered his body on August 13. Authorities then transported it to Broad Peak base camp before bringing it back to Gilgit-Baltistan.
Body Brought Home for Funeral
Pakistan Army helicopters airlifted Sakhi’s body from Broad Peak base camp to Skardu on Saturday.
Officials then transported the body to Nasirabad before taking it to Aliabad on Sunday morning.
The funeral prayers took place at Aliabad College Ground. GB Tourism and Culture Minister Naiknam Karim and district administration officials joined local residents and members of Sakhi’s family at the gathering.
Karim paid tribute to the climber and described his death as a loss for both Gilgit-Baltistan and Pakistan.
He said Sakhi loved the mountains and had built a strong reputation in the mountaineering community despite his young age.
Sakhi’s family later took his body to the ancestral graveyard in Aliabad, where they laid him to rest.
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Search Continues for Two Climbers
Sakhi was part of an expedition led by renowned British-Nepali mountaineer Nirmal Purja.
Purja’s body was recovered on August 2 and later transported to Nepal.
Authorities have so far recovered the bodies of eight climbers from the 10-member expedition. Search teams continue efforts to locate American climber Sarah Mallory Geis and Nepalese climber Nawang Thindu Sherpa.
The avalanche turned the expedition into one of the season’s most serious mountaineering tragedies on Broad Peak.
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Sohail Sakhi, 30, had extensive experience in mountain operations. He led rope-fixing teams and often volunteered for rescue missions in difficult terrain.
Sajid Hussain, Assistant Director at the Gilgit-Baltistan Tourism Department, said the GB government would provide Rs3 million to Sakhi’s family.
The payment will come under an insurance policy introduced by the government for local porters, climbers and mountain guides.
Sakhi’s death has left the local mountaineering community mourning the loss of a young climber who devoted much of his life to the mountains.
His funeral in Aliabad brought together residents, officials and fellow members of the community to honour his life and remember his contribution to mountaineering and mountain rescue work.
