Embassy casts doubts on reports of 100 Pak-American deaths in New York

The Pakistan Embassy in the US has brushed aside as “guesstimates” media reports about the death of more than 100 Pakistani-Americans in the New York region resulting from the coronavirus pandemic sweeping the United States and many other countries of the world.

“We have seen media reports on the number of Pakistani-American deaths on account of Covid-19 infections in the US. There are no formally confirmed figures available from any official source in the US,” the embassy said in a statement on Saturday.

“These are guesstimates being informally quoted by community sources and some funeral homes. Such figures cannot, therefore, be authenticated,” the statement said, adding that it was an evolving situation.

“Meanwhile, we have no reports even informal ones of any Pakistani-American deaths from our consulates in Chicago, Los Angeles, and Houston,” the embassy said.

“The Embassy and the Consulate Generals are in touch with our community members and will be ready to extend any assistance and support wherever needed.”