ISLAMABAD - Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud has invited Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supremo Nawaz Sharif and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to the kingdom to perform Umrah as a gesture of goodwill, PML-N Quaid is considered close to the royal family.
A private TV channel, quoting sources, said the three-time former prime minister — who is in a self-imposed exile in London on medical grounds since November 2019 —will depart for Saudi Arabia along with his daughter Maryam Nawaz and other family members via a special plane on April 11.
Nawaz Sharif will be the royal guest in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
He would spend the last 10 days of the holy month of Ramazan in Medinah and Makkah. However, the final schedule of Sharif’s visit to the Kingdom has not been announced yet. It is pertinent to mention here that various ministers and parliamentarians have devised plans to perform Umrah during the period.
According to media reports, the news of Sharif’s planned visit to Saudi Arabia has led to speculations that he may use the opportunity to return to Pakistan. However, there has been no official confirmation from Sharif or his party about his plans to return.