- High-altitude porters prepare to retrieve body from Camp 3.
- GB government and FCNA coordinate helicopter support.
- Alternative arrangements available for recovery mission: Tarar.
Federal Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said on Tuesday that the mission to retrieve the body of Pakistani mountaineer Asma Mushtaq from Spantik Mountain has resumed following improved weather conditions.
“After the weather conditions improved, the rescue team has once again departed from Base Camp and is now heading towards Camp 2,” the minister said in an update posted on X.
He added that the team was moving carefully and would continue the operation as weather conditions permitted, while expressing hope for its safety and success.
The recovery operation had earlier been halted after heavy snowfall and strong winds forced the team to turn back while approaching Camp 3.
A day ago, Tarar said high-altitude porters were expected to reach Camp 3, retrieve Mushtaq’s body and bring it down to base camp. However, worsening weather conditions prevented the team from proceeding.
A helicopter has also been authorised to support the retrieval operation, with coordination established between the Gilgit-Baltistan government and the Force Command Northern Areas (FCNA), Tarar had added.
He said that alternative arrangements were also in place and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif was being kept updated on the situation.
Recovery operation
The Alpine Club of Pakistan (ACP) said Mushtaq’s body remained at approximately 6,400 metres, while the recovery team had reached Camp 2 before operations were halted by heavy snowfall.
The team was advised to return to Base Camp and wait for a suitable weather window, the ACP said.
The recovery operation is being coordinated by Mushtaq’s expedition company in collaboration with the Tourism Department, local government and the ACP. Climbers from different teams are also participating in the recovery effort.
The ACP said the circumstances surrounding Mushtaq’s death, as well as the conduct and response of the expedition company, would be fully investigated once the teams were safely down and her body had been recovered.
“Any necessary action will follow the findings of that investigation,” it said.
Pakistani climber’s death
Mushtaq died after suffering a serious high-altitude medical emergency while descending from the 7,027-metre-high Spantik Mountain in the Karakoram range, according to the ACP.
The mountaineer had successfully reached the summit in good health but suffered the medical emergency at approximately 6,400 metres during her descent.
Her mountain guide Akbar Ali, along with another guide, immediately provided assistance and support following the incident. The guides made every possible effort to save her under extremely challenging conditions, according to the ACP and her expedition company.
The ACP expressed condolences to Mushtaq’s family, friends and the wider mountaineering community.
Mushtaq was originally from Lahore and worked in Britain as a doctor specialising in obstetrics and gynaecology. Beyond her medical career, she was a traveller, vlogger and mountaineer who documented her expeditions on social media.
