Hina Rabbani expected to represent Pakistan in FIFA World Cup in Doha

Minister of State Hina Rabbani Khar is likely to visit Doha to attend the FIFA World Cup in the first week of December. 

Before the World Cup even began, the Foreign Office had already received invitations, and world leaders, including Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman, who watched his country’s team defeat Argentina’s champions in an incredible and unforgettable victory, attended the opening ceremony.

According to the sources, dates are still being finalized. Additionally, on Thursday, Saoud Abdulrahman Al-Thani, the ambassador of Qatar in Islamabad, made a call to Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari to extend an invitation from his Qatari counterpart to watch the World Cup.

According to sources, it was crucial for Pakistan to express solidarity with a fellow Muslim nation that hosted the world cup for the first time and was being criticized by some capitals around the world, international non-governmental organizations (INGOs), and even the media for alleged violations of human rights.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif was the first here who in a tweet supported Qatar. “Unfortunate that Qatar is being subjected to a barrage of propaganda as host of FIFA World Cup. It should be rather commended for wonderful arrangements for the mega event and being a promoter of global peace and development. Pakistan stands in solidarity with HH Emir and the people of Qatar,” he wrote.

In Islamabad, it was the German Ambassador Alfred Grannas, who in a short tweet displayed the Sialkot-made football exported in hundreds of thousands of rupees to the World Cup. “Every goal is a Pakistani goal,” he tweeted.