President Alvi telephones COAS General Qamar Javed Bajwa, offers condolences for the martyrs of helicopter crash

ISLAMABAD, August 02 (SABAH): President Dr. Arif Alvi has condoled the martyrdom of the high-ranking army officers with Chief of Army Staff (COAS), General Qamar Javed Bajwa on the telephone on Tuesday. He expressed his deep sorrow and grief over the martyrdom of the army officers and soldiers in the helicopter crash while on a mission to provide relief to flood victims of Balochistan.

President Dr. Arif Alvi offered his deep condolences to the Army Chief on the martyrdom of Corps Commander 12 Corps Lieutenant General Sarfraz Ali, Director General Pakistan Coast Guard Major General Amjad Hanif, 12 Corps Brigadier Muhammad Khalid, Pilot Major Saeed Ahmed, Assistant Pilot Major Muhammad Talha Mannan and Naik Mudassar Fayyaz during the relief and rescue operations in aid of flood victims.

Expressing his deep sorrow and grief over the unfortunate incident, the President prayed for the elevation of their ranks in Jannah and also expressed sympathy for their families for their irreparable loss.

Paying tribute to the martyrs’ services for the country and the nation, President Dr. Arif Alvi said that these officers were selflessly engaged in relief operations disregarding the danger posed to their lives to alleviate the suffering of the flood victims. The President added that the entire nation is indebted to them and salutes them for responding to the call of duty and providing relief to the people facing hardship due to heavy floods and bad weather.

During his conversation, the President affectionately recalled a briefing given to him by Corps Commander Lt General Sarfraz Ali during one of his visits to Gawadar and said that he found the officer extremely capable and intelligent having exceptional management skills.

Chief of Army Staff, while apprising the President of the unfortunate incident, said that the helicopter met an accident because of low visibility due to bad weather and added that the wreckage of the helicopter had been recovered and all military officers had embraced martyrdom.

During the telephonic interaction, President Dr. Arif Alvi said that he would personally attend the funerals of the martyrs and would personally offer his condolences to their families and relatives.