Staff Reporter
Peshawar:
A 13-member delegation of the Caravan-e-Hawa Literary Forum Khyber Pakhtunkhwa visited the Iranian Consulate yesterday under the leadership of Chairperson Bushra Farukh and met Consul General Ali Banfashah Khwah. The delegation expressed deep sorrow and condolences over the martyrdom of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah al-Uzma Khamenei, his family members, and other martyrs.
On the occasion, Bushra Farukh said that Iran and Pakistan have enjoyed deep fraternal relations since the very beginning. Both countries share each other’s joys and sorrows, and their relationship resembles that of one body—if one part suffers pain, the entire body feels it. She added that in this difficult time, the people of Pakistan stand with their Iranian brothers and sisters.
Other members of the delegation also expressed their condolences individually and shared their grief. Consul General Ali Banfashah Khwah thanked the delegation and said he was sincerely grateful that its members had come from distant places while observing fasting to share in their grief and express solidarity.
He said that although the Supreme Leader has departed from this world, he will always remain alive in the hearts of people because of his thoughts and character. He always spoke about unity within the Muslim Ummah and discouraged division. He was not only a scholar of words but also of action, who sacrificed his life for a great cause and attained the high status of martyrdom. He said that the light lit by Ayatollah al-Uzma Khamenei would never be allowed to extinguish, and that people of the pen should spread the message of Muslim unity across the world through their writings.
He expressed hope that the sun of peace would soon rise over Iran.
Members of the delegation included Kaneez Fatima (Principal, Home Economics College for Women), Basmeena Siraj (Head of Department, Shaheed Benazir University), Dr. Shaheen Umar (Principal, Government Frontier College for Women), Maryam Bibi (Patron, Khwendo Kor), Faiza Shehzad (President APWA and General Secretary Caravan-e-Hawa), Samina Qadir (Vice Chairperson), Tabinda Farukh (Media Coordinator), renowned writer Atiya Hidayatullah, Shaheen Amin, Nosheen Taj, Ambreen Taj, and Dr. Muhammad Umar (Health Advisor, APWA).
At the end of the visit, Bushra Farukh and other members of the delegation also penned a written message of condolence addressed to the Iranian leadership and the martyrs.
