LONDON/LAHORE: Businessman and Pakistan’s Ambassador at Large on Economic Diplomacy, Umar Farooq Zahoor, has filed a criminal complaint in a Lahore court after a Norwegian tabloid ran a defamatory campaign against him in association with Indian media about his recent meeting with US Vice President JD Vance in Islamabad related to Iran-US peace dialogue facilitated by Pakistan.
The complaint, filed under Section 500 of the Pakistan Penal Code, names right-wing Norway tabloid Verdens Gang (VG), its reporter Rolf J. Wideroe, and prosecutor Carl Graff Hartmann for repeatedly attacking the Dubai-based Pakistani-origin businessman who has been twice honored with the Hilal-e-Imtiaz by the government of Pakistan. According to a copy of the report available with this publication, Zahoor alleges the publication falsely described him as “wanted by Norwegian police” in the article that was published following Zahoor’s high-profile diplomatic engagement in Islamabad, which showed Zahoor meeting with the American delegation - Vice Preside JD Vance, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner. Zahoor was filmed with the high-profile President Trump-appointed delegation when they were being seen off at Nur Khan Airbase by Pakistani civilian and military leadership. Zahoor alleges that VG has conducted a “malicious and one-sided campaign” against him for over 15 years, publishing defamatory material, despite legal clarifications and the fact that the Interpol ended cases against him due to their political nature. He contends the police and the courts also dropped cases against him years ago. He says his previous legal action in Pakistan against the tabloid and its reporter succeeded and court decreed Rs3 million in damages in his favour in 2025 after the publication failed to retract earlier reports.
