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The Afghan woman Sharbat Gula will return to Afghanistan on coming Monday as she has been released from the jail nearly two weeks after she was arrested by the Pakistani authorities.
The Afghan Ambassador to Pakistan Hazrat Omar Zakhilwal informed regarding the release of Gula from the jail earlier today.
“With utmost delight, I announce that Sharbatgula is now free from the legal troubles she endured over the past couple of weeks. She soon will also be free from an uncertain life of a refugee as she will be on her way back to her own country as soon as next Monday where she still is a beloved image and a national icon,” Zakhilwal said in a statemetn posted on his Facebook page.
Zakhilwal further added that Gula will be met by President Ashraf Ghani upon her arrival to welcome her back home and help her with her resettlement.
“I take this opportunity to thank all those who voiced their support and sympathy to the case of Sharbatgula. This includes prominent as well as ordinary people within the Government, civil society, Peshawar Court and FIA office, media and the public in large. You all played a significant role resulting in today’s good news,” he said.
A Pakistani court earlier rejected to release Gula from the prison on bail despite the country’s minister of interior said she will be released.
Gula gained global recognition when her photograph was featured on National Geographic Magazine’s cover in 1985 and was linked with Leonardo Da Vinci’s Mona.
She was residing together with her sons in Nasir Bagh camp established for Afghan refugees since she moved to Peshawar in 1984. -KP
The Pashtun Times
