Four Spanish climbers missing in northern Pakistan

Four Spanish mountaineers were listed as missing in Gilgit-Baltistan in northern Pakistan, days after three Iranian climbers were lost in the same region.

Islamabad: Four Spanish mountaineers were on Tuesday listed as missing in Gilgit-Baltistan in northern Pakistan, days after three Iranian climbers were lost in the same region.

The missing mountaineers were part of a team of five Spaniards who left their base camp early on Sunday to scale the 8,068-metre Gasherbrum-1, also known as the Hidden Peak, in the Karakoram range of Gilgit-Baltistan. Two of the climbers decided to come back short of the summit due to harsh weather while three others made it to the top at around noon on Sunday. Later, contact was lost with all the mountaineers till one of them made it to the base camp yesterday. Karrar Haidri of the Alpine Club of Pakistan told a news agency that efforts were being made to trace the four Spaniards. "Rescue efforts have been launched and high-altitude porters have been sent to find the missing climbers, but so far nothing is known about their whereabouts," Haidri said. This was the second incident involving foreign climbers in the region as three Iranians went missing on Saturday. Haidri said a fresh bid to locate the Iranians was made today after a special request from the Iranian Embassy but so far no trace had been found of the missing men. Earlier, authorities called off efforts to find the Iranians yesterday. Last month, 10 foreign climbers were killed by militants at the base camp of Nanga Parbat, the ninth highest peak in the world. G-1 is the 11th highest peak and a great attraction for climbers. PTI