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Published 13:53 IST, October 7th 2019

Saudi Crown Prince recalls private jet in snub to Imran Khan: Reports

Mohammed bin Salman ordered his "private jet to disembowel the Pakistani delegation" after Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince was left "alienated."

Reported by: Aishwaria Sonavane
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Mohammed bin Salman ordered his 'private jet to disembark the Pakistani delegation' after Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince was left "alienated" with "some dimensions" of Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan's diplomacy at the UN General Assembly in New York. 

According to claims by a Pakistani magazine the Kingdom's Crown Prince was miffed with Imran Khan's "interlocution" with the foe, Iran's Hassan Rouhani. Mohammed bin Salman was also reportedly unhappy at the prospect of Pakistan PM along with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Malaysian Prime Minister Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad planning to establish an English news channel to confront Islamophobia in the West. 

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Before flying to New York to attend the 74th UN General Assembly, Imran Khan first visited Jeddah to meet with the Crown Prince, who offered his private jet to the Pakistani Prime Minister. However, while returning to Islamabad from New York on September 28, Imran Khan could not fly the private jet due to a technical glitch and had to return on a commercial jet. 

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Days after the visit, the Pakistan magazine contradicting the claims of a "technical glitch" reported over the annoyance of the Crown Prince. "He visibly snubbed Imran by ordering his private jet to disembowel the Pakistani delegation," the Pakistani magazine said. As per Pakistan media, the plane was headed from New York to Islamabad where it developed a technical fault, minutes after taking off from the Kennedy International Airport. 

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However, the claims have been disdained by the Pakistan government saying, "This is a cooked story. Pakistan and Saudi Arab leaders have good relations. There is an attempt to weaken the successful talks between the world leaders and the Prime Minister (Imran Khan). Conclusion over the Prime Minister's meeting with Turkey and Malaysia leader was self-made. The report was aimed to strike on the relations of two countries for political motives. We dismiss this report".  

Pakistan PM Imran Khan at UNGA

Pakistan PM on September 25 said that US President Donald Trump asked him to mediate to defuse the Middle Eastern tensions brimming between Iran and Saudi Arabia.  After a trilateral meet between Pakistan, Turkey, and Malaysia, it was consolidated that they will establish a "strong media and communication center" to combat Islamophobia. 

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11:59 IST, October 7th 2019