Former foreign minister Gohar Ayub Khan passes away

ISLAMABAD: Gohar Ayub Khan, former foreign minister and National Assembly speaker, passed away on Friday.

His funeral prayer will be offered on Saturday (tomorrow) at 3:00pm in Village Rehana, Haripur District in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Taking to X, formerly known as Twitter, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Secretary General Omar Ayub Khan confirmed that his father passed away peacefully after a brief illness.

His funeral prayer will be offered on Saturday (tomorrow) at 3:00pm in Village Rehana, Haripur District, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa . “Qul will be offered at 11am at Omar Ayub Khan's residence Main G.T Road Haripur on 19th November,” he added.

Born in 1937, the former foreign minister was under treatment in a private hospital in Islamabad for quite some time, PTI spokesperson Rauf Hussain said. 

Gohar Ayub Khan was the son of former field marshal president Ayub Khan.

He also paid tribute to the ex-FM for his services to the nation and the country.

Expressing deep sorrow and grief over the demise of the former foreign minister, President Dr Arif Alvi offered his heartfelt condolences to the family members. 

He prayed to Allah Almighty to rest the departed soul in eternal peace and grant courage to the bereaved family to bear this loss with fortitude.

The president also paid tributes to the services of the deceased for the country in the field of politics.

Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar has also expressed deep sorrow and grief over the death of Gohar. In his condolence message, the premier prayed for the high ranks of the departed soul and for the bereaved family to bear the loss with fortitude. 

He also paid tribute to the ex-foreign minister for his contributions as a politician.

Meanwhile, PML-N President Shahbaz Sharif, Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani, NA Speaker Raja Pervaiz Ashraf, PML-Q chief Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain and other leaders and eminent personalities expressed grief and sorrow over the sad demise of Gohar.