THAI crew and passengers safe: Karachi attack

[webfact]

Karachi attack: THAI crew and passengers safe
The Nation

THAI plane caught in airport drama after terror attack on Sunday night

BANGKOK: -- All passengers on a THAI jet that was among aircraft stranded at Pakistan's besieged Karachi International Airport yesterday were safe, Thai Foreign Ministry spokesman Sek Wannamethee said.

The airport was attacked on Sunday night by Taliban gunmen, resulting in 28 deaths - including 10 militants, as well as security personnel and airport workers.

The TG508 flight was due to leave after 2pm yesterday as the six-hour siege ended and the airport was cleared.

The flight arrived at the airport from Muscat and was scheduled initially to leave for Bangkok near midnight on Sunday. It failed to leave after the raid occurred and authorities shut down the airport for 24 hours.

Sek said the 296 passengers and the 16 crew were taken to safe reception rooms inside the airport. Three passengers and the crew were Thai.

Sek added that the Thai embassy in Pakistan and Thai consulate-general in Karachi have been ordered to closely monitor the situation in Pakistan. Thai consular officials in Karachi would cooperate and discuss with local administrators and leaders on safety and security in the city. Thais and students in Karachi would also be warned and told about the situation.

"Although the attack took place in the Karachi International Airport, we can't know for sure about the situation in the future. The Thai Embassy in Islamabad will hold discussions with the Pakistani government about the safety for Thai communities in the country," Sek said.

Pakistani troops fought an all-night battle yesterday after Taliban gunmen armed with rocket launchers and suicide vests besieged Karachi airport.

The attack at Jinnah International Airport began just before midnight on Sunday. At dawn the military said all 10 attackers had been killed.

After authorities declared the airport cleared around dawn, an AFP reporter witnessed fresh gunfire breaking out inside the airport - where explosions and fires had erupted during the night - prompting security forces to relaunch the operation.


-- The Nation 2014-06-10

[lee b]

Glad to know they are ok..Don't fly there, Don't go there, what do they offer to Thailand? Oranges? Best bet is to stay away. Emm I will await the replies now, but if you are going to yap on saying i'm wrong, please state why...

[Oryx816]

Very disturbing incident. RIP to the innocents.

On another note, how large is the Thai community in Pakistan? The Nation might be fluffing the Thai influence in Pakistan, but I haven't been there, so I don't know if there is a significant Thai expat population. Are they called the Urdu equivalent of "farang"?

[Naam]

Glad to know they are ok..Don't fly there, Don't go there, what do they offer to Thailand? Oranges? Best bet is to stay away. Emm I will await the replies now, but if you are going to yap on saying i'm wrong, please state why...

you are wrong because it's none of your business to advise people where they should travel or not.

[lee b]

Glad to know they are ok..Don't fly there, Don't go there, what do they offer to Thailand? Oranges? Best bet is to stay away. Emm I will await the replies now, but if you are going to yap on saying i'm wrong, please state why...

you are wrong because it's none of your business to advise people where they should travel or not.

That did not take long A country like that likes no other, almost impossible for the locals here to get visas, if they do they are treated like dirt, why oh why?? And the other way around im trying to figure out what Pakistani nationals offer Thailand? If people wish to go there it is up to them.

I have been, not nice..AT ALL. Before you say what do i offer to this country, well alot, ive made it a hell of a lot of money. And its none of your bussiness how ive done it

Edited June 10, 2014 by lee b

[kwak250]

Sure the bargirls are very grateful

[lee b]

Sure the bargirls are very grateful

hahaha not on my list though

[worgeordie]

Glad to know they are ok..Don't fly there, Don't go there, what do they offer to Thailand? Oranges? Best bet is to stay away. Emm I will await the replies now, but if you are going to yap on saying i'm wrong, please state why...

you are wrong because it's none of your business to advise people where they should travel or not.

But governments do it all the time!

regards Worgeordie

[pieeyed]

If you have ever had to fly from the middle east sometimes you have no choice other than to stop where the airline you are using stops. Many people that would be on that flight would only wanting to get home, not stopping in Karachi.

[ChrisY1]

Karachi will definately never be on my itinerary...as is the rest of the ME.

[Bluespunk]

Glad to know they are ok..Don't fly there, Don't go there, what do they offer to Thailand? Oranges? Best bet is to stay away. Emm I will await the replies now, but if you are going to yap on saying i'm wrong, please state why...

People live in Pakistan and it is a beautiful country. Yes it has problems but comments about not wanting to go there and the BS you spout about oranges are just nonsense. Thailand is indeed a great place to live but other places have as much if not more to offer. Pakistan has many places of religious significance, but does that not count for you because it is Islam? The mountainous regions are truly beautiful and other areas of cultural and historical importance are to be found there. So before you start yapping about places not being worth visiting, stop and think first.

Or do you feel the same about Pakistanis as you do Nigerians?

Edited June 10, 2014 by Bluespunk

[webfact]

Thai Airways flight TG508 arrives at Suvarnabhumi

SAMUT PRAKAN, 10 June 2014 (NNT) - TG 508 flight with 296 crew and passengers has arrived at Thailand’s Suvarnabhumi International Airport. The jet was stranded at Karachi airport when a group of gunmen attacked the airport Sunday night.

THAI Flight TG508 arrived in Samut Prakan at 2 am this morning. All of the 296 passengers, including 2 Thai nationals, were safe. The flight was left stranded for over 24 hours after heavily armed gunmen attacked Pakistan’s Jinnah International Airport.

A passenger said during the assault, all of the passengers were asked to stay inside the jet for about 3 hours after the plane had landed in Pakistan. Then, airport authorities came to escort all of them to a safe place inside the terminal.

On Sunday night, Taliban militants disguised as security forces stormed Pakistan's busiest airport and at least 27 people were killed in a dramatic night-long battle. Gun battles raged through the night until security forces regained control of the airport at dawn.


-- NNT 2014-06-10

[Paulzed]

Madness

[Benmart]

Glad to know they are ok..Don't fly there, Don't go there, what do they offer to Thailand? Oranges? Best bet is to stay away. Emm I will await the replies now, but if you are going to yap on saying i'm wrong, please state why...

you are wrong because it's none of your business to advise people where they should travel or not.

Whilst I agree with you in principal, I prefer a less confrontational and productive form of reply.

Nothing better than declaring "you are wrong" to shut off dialog. It's appears to be the "I'm right, you're-wrong" approach. The "none of your business" line also seems contradictory. It very well may be none of mine, yours or anyone else's I suppose.

But then the TVF seems to be the place to discuss different points of view without shutting off the exchange or embarking on a crusade of one-sided knowledge.

I would like to find out the reason the poster feels one shouldn't "fly there" or "Don't go there"aside from the obvious violence. Perhaps he has been there, is from there, knows someone who just came back, etc. I'd sure like to hear more.

As they say here, "It's up to you".

[Morch]

Glad to know they are ok..Don't fly there, Don't go there, what do they offer to Thailand? Oranges? Best bet is to stay away. Emm I will await the replies now, but if you are going to yap on saying i'm wrong, please state why...

People live in Pakistan and it is a beautiful country. Yes it has problems but comments about not wanting to go there and the BS you spout about oranges are just nonsense. Thailand is indeed a great place to live but other places have as much if not more to offer. Pakistan has many places of religious significance, but does that not count for you because it is Islam? The mountainous regions are truly beautiful and other areas of cultural and historical importance are to be found there. So before you start yapping about places not being worth visiting, stop and think first.

Or do you feel the same about Pakistanis as you do Nigerians?

Indeed.

Definitely a country I would have been interested to spend time traveling in.

That said, probably won't anytime near - security issues being what they are. Pretty sure that there are areas where these

troubles are less in evidence, but guess I had enough excitement traveling in risky areas, and other options out there.

Say the same about Thailand's Southernmost provinces when friends ask for travel advice.

Not really familiar with special Thai connections to Pakistan (cultural, trade or others), although seem to recall that there was

an old memoir of a royal visit there, which I believe was quite popular reading many years ago.

And yes, when flying I do try to avoid layovers in potential problematic locations, but again, usually many options to choose

from.

[Benmart]

Sure the bargirls are very grateful

Seems juvenile on the face of it. But then again...

[Robroona]

Where were all the passengers coming from or going to? Only 2 or 3 of them were Thai out of 290-odd? Unless the reports are muddled. Or unless I am

[Morch]

Where were all the passengers coming from or going to? Only 2 or 3 of them were Thai out of 290-odd? Unless the reports are muddled. Or unless I am

Guess most would passengers would be Pakistanis, foreigners working in country and people in transit.

[Jean Pierre Jacquot]

lee b, on 10 Jun 2014 - 08:08, said:

Naam, on 10 Jun 2014 - 07:32, said:

lee b, on 10 Jun 2014 - 07:10, said:

Glad to know they are ok..Don't fly there, Don't go there, what do they offer to Thailand? Oranges? Best bet is to stay away. Emm I will await the replies now, but if you are going to yap on saying i'm wrong, please state why...

you are wrong because it's none of your business to advise people where they should travel or not.

That did not take long A country like that likes no other, almost impossible for the locals here to get visas, if they do they are treated like dirt, why oh why?? And the other way around im trying to figure out what Pakistani nationals offer Thailand? If people wish to go there it is up to them.

I have been, not nice..AT ALL. Before you say what do i offer to this country, well alot, ive made it a hell of a lot of money. And its none of your bussiness how ive done it

5555555..........obviously in a bad mood today, aren't you? Not that Pakistan is on the top of the list of countries I want to visit, but tell me are you going to advise everybody not to visit the US after each incident of a crazy guy killing people in public places, just shooting anybody he can? You aren't, right?

[impulse]

Karachi will definately never be on my itinerary...as is the rest of the ME.

Thailand, 853,000 UK visitors and residents in 2009. 288 died. That’s 1 in 2,962

Pakistan: 333,000 UK visitors and residents in 2009. 15 died. That’s 1 in 22,200

Ratios are similar for those British visitors who ended up in hospital.

Looks like Thailand is about 7.5 x more dangerous to British visitors than Pakistan.

Terror gets all the headlines, but dead is still dead.

Source: http://www.traveldailynews.com/images/upload/File/british-abroad-report-240809.pdf

Edited June 10, 2014 by impulse

[marcusd]

Glad to know they are ok..Don't fly there, Don't go there, what do they offer to Thailand? Oranges? Best bet is to stay away. Emm I will await the replies now, but if you are going to yap on saying i'm wrong, please state why...

People live in Pakistan and it is a beautiful country. Yes it has problems but comments about not wanting to go there and the BS you spout about oranges are just nonsense. Thailand is indeed a great place to live but other places have as much if not more to offer. Pakistan has many places of religious significance, but does that not count for you because it is Islam? The mountainous regions are truly beautiful and other areas of cultural and historical importance are to be found there. So before you start yapping about places not being worth visiting, stop and think first.

Or do you feel the same about Pakistanis as you do Nigerians?

Maybe so nut Pakistan is a,hub of problems at present.

Visiting there as a foreigner only invokes trouble.

If people want to go let them but if they get into bother let it be on their own head and not expect sympathy nor assistance from their government if they have travel advisories

[impulse]

Maybe so nut Pakistan is a,hub of problems at present.

Visiting there as a foreigner only invokes trouble.

If people want to go let them but if they get into bother let it be on their own head and not expect sympathy nor assistance from their government if they have travel advisories

Umm, you do know that Thai Visa is a website about Thailand, a location with about 72 countries having travel advisories?

Of course, I write that with tongue firmly in cheek. I'm here, and happy to be here.

Edited June 10, 2014 by impulse

[Bluespunk]

Glad to know they are ok..Don't fly there, Don't go there, what do they offer to Thailand? Oranges? Best bet is to stay away. Emm I will await the replies now, but if you are going to yap on saying i'm wrong, please state why...

People live in Pakistan and it is a beautiful country. Yes it has problems but comments about not wanting to go there and the BS you spout about oranges are just nonsense. Thailand is indeed a great place to live but other places have as much if not more to offer. Pakistan has many places of religious significance, but does that not count for you because it is Islam? The mountainous regions are truly beautiful and other areas of cultural and historical importance are to be found there. So before you start yapping about places not being worth visiting, stop and think first.

Or do you feel the same about Pakistanis as you do Nigerians?

Maybe so nut Pakistan is a,hub of problems at present.

Visiting there as a foreigner only invokes trouble.

If people want to go let them but if they get into bother let it be on their own head and not expect sympathy nor assistance from their government if they have travel advisories

Agreed but LB's post had a rather more prejudicial taste to it.

[simple1]

Glad to know they are ok..Don't fly there, Don't go there, what do they offer to Thailand? Oranges? Best bet is to stay away. Emm I will await the replies now, but if you are going to yap on saying i'm wrong, please state why...

Its been covered that mostly in transit passengers. However a trade surplus for Thailand of approx US$840m. A component of Thai diplomatic and security co-operation is the "look West" policy and Pakistani assistance in relations with OIC.

http://www.thaiembassy.org/islamabad/en/relation

[lockman]

Karachi will definately never be on my itinerary...as is the rest of the ME.

Thailand, 853,000 UK visitors and residents in 2009. 288 died. That’s 1 in 2,962

Pakistan: 333,000 UK visitors and residents in 2009. 15 died. That’s 1 in 22,200

Ratios are similar for those British visitors who ended up in hospital.

Looks like Thailand is about 7.5 x more dangerous to British visitors than Pakistan.

Terror gets all the headlines, but dead is still dead.

Source: http://www.traveldailynews.com/images/upload/File/british-abroad-report-240809.pdf

This is a nice chart, but like other things doesn't say much about why someone died. Myself I've known a number of Brits who died here..mainly due to old age. So unless you know actual number of people, age, and cause of death, as well as where they were living (and we know there are thousands of border runners), this is only another statistic that can be construed however.

[oldsailor35]

The Pakistani's have only themselves to blame as they have been 'courting' the Taliban for too long. No sympathy with the country.

[Naam]

Glad to know they are ok..Don't fly there, Don't go there, what do they offer to Thailand? Oranges? Best bet is to stay away. Emm I will await the replies now, but if you are going to yap on saying i'm wrong, please state why...

you are wrong because it's none of your business to advise people where they should travel or not.

That did not take long A country like that likes no other, almost impossible for the locals here to get visas, if they do they are treated like dirt, why oh why?? And the other way around im trying to figure out what Pakistani nationals offer Thailand? If people wish to go there it is up to them.

I have been, not nice..AT ALL. Before you say what do i offer to this country, well alot, ive made it a hell of a lot of money. And its none of your bussiness how ive done it

so you made a hell of a lot of money for "this" country (whatever country you might be referring to). however... 1538.5 of your 1539 postings do not exactly present credible evidence that you ever made a substantial amount of money for any country or for yourself.

[Naam]

The Pakistani's have only themselves to blame as they have been 'courting' the Taliban for too long. No sympathy with the country.

do you think Pakistan will fare better with your sympathy?

[simple1]

The Pakistani's have only themselves to blame as they have been 'courting' the Taliban for too long. No sympathy with the country.

Whilst its true that for years elements in the Pakistani security apparatus have assisted Islamic extremists, tell that to the families of the nearly 4000 dead in the Pakistani security forces in fighting the Islamic extremists, plus the thousands of civilians killed by extremists.

http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304691904579348820227129270

It is claimed the military have killed more than 3,000 insurgents and injured more than 1,200 in their security operations.

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/mar/27/heavy-price-pakistan-says-war-terror-has-cost-near/

Edited June 10, 2014 by simple1

[impulse]

Terror gets all the headlines, but dead is still dead.

Source: http://www.traveldailynews.com/images/upload/File/british-abroad-report-240809.pdf

This is a nice chart, but like other things doesn't say much about why someone died. Myself I've known a number of Brits who died here..mainly due to old age. So unless you know actual number of people, age, and cause of death, as well as where they were living (and we know there are thousands of border runners), this is only another statistic that can be construed however.

Agreed. But I was surprised there are more Brits listed as residing in Pakistan than in Thailand. Kind of sticks a pin into the "died of old age" differential.

More than anything, I get a little perturbed by posts proclaiming "that place is a craphole and/or a death trap so I'll never ever go there". The world is full of great places and fascinating people. Not all of them make it into the travel brochures. Not all of them have whitewashing campaigns to proclaim, "the water's great, come on in!"

Thank God for that, or all we'd have is the Pattaya's, Phuket's, Las Vegas's, Cancun's and Paris's of the world, and nowhere to explore without climbing over the other tourists' detritus.

Edited June 10, 2014 by impulse