The federal government has issued a special permit to eight Qatari princes allowing them to hunt the internationally protected bird houbara bustard in Pakistan.

A letter issued by the government that is available with Online, the federal government issued eight special hunting permits to Qatari princes during the hunting season 2016-17.

The Foreign Office has forwarded the allocation letter to Qatar embassy in Islamabad in which federal government recommended respective provincial government to facilitate “respected dignities”.

Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber Al-Thani is allowed to hunt in Punjab’s Bhakkar and Jhang districts. The prince has lately been in the news following the submission of his letter in the Supreme Court in connection with the Panamagate case.

In his letter, he has described his father’s business relations with the family of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his involvement in the London apartments that are at the centre of the Panama Papers controversy.

The father of Qatar’s Ameer has been allotted Bahawalnagar district to hunt.

The other princes have been allocated Balochistan’s district Mosakhel and its tehsil Daag, district Loralai, district Sarab, district Barkhan and Sindh’s district Dadu for hunting the internationally protected migratory birds and animals.

This is not the first time that a special hunting permit has been issued to the Qatari princes.

Nawaz government had asked the Supreme Court to reconsider a ban on hunting houbara bustard by foreign dignitaries, saying the restriction was adversely affecting the country’s already-weakened relations with the Gulf in wake of turmoil in the region.