The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) on Sunday intercepted three women at Karachi airport attempting to travel to Saudi Arabia under the guise of Umrah pilgrims while allegedly planning to engage in begging.
According to an FIA spokesperson, the women were detained during an immigration check when it was discovered that they lacked return tickets and hotel bookings. This raised suspicion about their intentions.
The arrested individuals have been identified as Arooj Fatima, Maryam Nazir, and Jamila Bibi.
Authorities revealed that the women had previously been prevented from traveling at Lahore airport under similar circumstances. Following their detention, they were handed over to the FIA Anti-Smuggling Circle for further investigation.
This incident follows a recent operation where 24 individuals posing as Umrah pilgrims were offloaded from a Saudi Arabia-bound flight at Multan airport. The FIA has intensified scrutiny to curb such activities.