The National Assembly was informed on Wednesday that approximately half of the 20,000 Pakistani nationals currently detained in overseas jails are being held in Saudi Arabia for various crimes.

Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, who also serves as Deputy Prime Minister, revealed during the question break that a total of 10,279 Pakistanis are imprisoned in Saudi Arabia. The figure is part of a larger total of 19,997 Pakistani nationals detained in foreign prisons, according to data from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Giving details of the repatriation process for prisoners, Dar stated that emergency travel documents are issued to those whose passports have expired after the completion of their sentence. He also clarified that the Pakistani community helps pay the fines of prisoners who have served their time.

“There is no obstacle in the repatriation of prisoners to Pakistan,” Dar assured, adding that Saudi Arabia had agreed to transfer 570 prisoners back to Pakistan under a bilateral agreement.

According to the latest figures obtained from 88 Pakistani diplomatic missions worldwide, a total of 68 Pakistanis are on death row in 10 countries on charges of terrorism, murder and drug trafficking. The data also highlighted the major charges Pakistanis face abroad, such as illegal immigration, drug possession, murder, human trafficking and various forms of abuse.

While Saudi Arabia has the largest proportion of imprisoned Pakistanis, other countries with significant numbers include the UAE (5,292), Greece (598) and Oman (578). Further details provided by Dar list nationals detained in other countries including Malaysia, Turkiye and the UK, with many facing serious charges ranging from fraud and money laundering to espionage and smuggling.