A total of 7,208 Pakistani prisoners have been released from Saudi prisons between 2019 and 2024, the Senate was informed on Tuesday.
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar’s statement was in response to a question from Senator Dr. Zarqa Suharwardy Taimur regarding the 2019 announcement by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman during his visit to Pakistan, which promised the release of 2,107 Pakistani prisoners held in Saudi jails.
During the crown prince’s two-day historic visit in February 2019, it was announced that 2,100 Pakistani prisoners languishing in Saudi jails would be released as part of enhanced bilateral cooperation.
Dar’s statement included a detailed breakdown from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs regarding the releases since the visit: 545 prisoners in 2019, 892 in 2020, 916 in 2021, 1,331 in 2022, 1,394 in 2023, and 2,130 in 2024.
He further shared that of the released prisoners, 4,301 were under the consular jurisdiction of the Pakistan Consulate General in Jeddah, while 2,907 fell under the jurisdiction of the Pakistan Embassy in Riyadh.
