'Pakistan stands with Sri Lanka': Islamabad sends expired products as relief to Colombo amid Cyclone Ditwah

As Sri Lanka grapples with Cyclone Ditwah, Pakistan, in a friendly humanitarian gesture, sent aid to the island nation. After the consignment arrived, the Pakistani embassy in Colombo posted a picture of the goods transported with the caption: “Relief packages from Pakistan have been successfully delivered to assist our brothers and sisters affected by the recent floods in Sri Lanka, which signifies our unwavering solidarity.” It looks like the act garnered a lot of attention, but for the fact that the products delivered as aid had expired. Either it's a massive oversight by Islamabad, or they assumed this would not get highlighted.

Pakistan cannot even call it propaganda or negative publicity, as the date is clearly visible in the photo that the embassy posted itself. “Pakistan stands with Sri Lanka today and always,” the post added. But this time, Islamabad stood with Colombo with expired products. The latter is busy handling the situation, and no official statement has been released yet. The products packed in 2022 have a shelf life, which is 2024 as printed. Now, as we've entered December 2025, the relief material sent expired over a year ago.