ISLAMABAD: President Zulfikar Ali Bhutto’s state visit to the United States, which was scheduled to commence on July 16, has been postponed till September next because of the sudden illness of US President Richard Nixon, a Foreign Office spokesman confir­med here this evening [July 13]. The spokesman said a new date for Mr Bhutto’s visit to the United States would be announced in the near future. — News agencies

[Meanwhile, as reported by news agencies from Istanbul,] President Bhutto yesterday [July 12] kissed the black cloak of the Holy Prophet [PBUH] preserved in Istanbul’s Top­kapi Museum. Officials said those who had the honour of kissing the holy relic can be counted on finger tips because few are allowed to touch the nearly 1300-year-old holy cloak. President Bhutto also saw the swords of Hazrat Abu Bakr, Hazrat Omar Farooq and Hazrat Ali.

President Bhutto made a two-hour stopover in Istanbul while flying to Rome. [T]he Presi­dential party … drove through the ancient and historic city of Istanbul flanked by Marmara Sea. The ruins of the Roman empire reminded of ancient history while minarets of mosques spoke volumes of Muslim glory when Mohammad the conqueror took over Constantinople in 1453 and named it Istanbul.

Published in Dawn, July 14th, 2023