UK advises its citizens to avoid 'all travel' to parts of Pakistan

The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) of the United Kingdom has advised its citizens to avoid "all travel" to parts of Pakistan in its latest travel advisory.

The FCDO is a body which provides advice to British nationals about the risks of travelling to help them make informed decisions.

In its latest issue, the Office has strictly advised against travel to areas surrounding the Pakistan and Afghanistan border.

"The FCDO advises against all travel to within 10 miles of the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan," the advisory stated.

Other areas listed by the FCDO as unsafe for travelling include parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan and Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK).

Here are province/region-based lists of areas:

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

• Bajaur
• Bannu
• Buner
• Charsadda
• Dera Ismail Khan
• Khyber
• Kohat
• Kurram
• Lakki Marwat
• Lower Dir
• Mohmand
• Orakzai
• Peshawar, including the city of Peshawar
• Swat
• Tank
• North Waziristan
• Upper South Waziristan
• Lower South Waziristan
• the Karakoram Highway between Mansehra and Chilas via Battagram, Besham City, Dasu and Sazin up to the junction with the N15
• the N45 Highway, from the north of the Mardan ring road, to the edge of Chitral City

Balochistan

FCDO advises against all travel to Balochistan province, except essential travel to the southern coast of Balochistan, which are:

• area south of (and including) the N10 motorway
• section of the N25 from the N10/N25 intersection to the Balochistan-Sindh border, including the port city of Gwadar

AJK

FCDO advises against all travel to within 10 miles of the Line of Control (LOC), the military control line between the AJK and the Indian Illegaly Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK).

Sindh

"FCDO advises against all but essential travel to all areas of Sindh Province north of and including the city of Nawabshah."

The FCDO also warned the UK citizens that their travel insurance could be "invalidated" if they travel against the advice.

It is pertinent to mention here that Pakistan has witnessed an alarming surge in terror-related incidents since the Taliban-led administration took over Afghanistan in 2021.

The year 2023 saw as many as 586 terror attacks with 17% claimed by the banned terror outfits such as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), Daesh and others.

Meanwhile, security forces conducted 197 operations against outlaws leaving 537-545 of them dead.

As per the Annual Security Report released by the Centre for Research and Security Studies (CRSS), the country witnessed 1,524 deaths and 1,463 injuries in the previous year.