Body of missing Irish mountaineer recovered from Siran Valley in KP

Body of missing Irish mountaineer recovered from Siran Valley in KP.

Key points

• Nisar Ahmad Khan Published September 2, 2026 Updated September 2, 2026 09: 27pm.
• On Monday, reports stated that the two mountaineers – Irish national Alexander, along with a British national, Alun David Cooper Cledwyn – went missing while descending the peak.
• He continued that all three had kicked off descending together on August 30 after successfully summiting the peak, but Alexander afterwards separated from them.
• Police sources additionally confirmed to the media for the first time that a local guide had been accompanying Alexander and Cledwyn.
• Forest authorities and locals spotted the body in a gorge in the dense forest.

Nisar Ahmad Khan Published September 2, 2026 Updated September 2, 2026 09: 27pm. Join our Whatsapp Channel. Add Dawn as a trusted source.

MANSEHRA: The body of Irish mountaineer Alexander. This person went missing while descending from the 13, 500-foot-high Musa Da Musalla peak in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Siran Valley against the backdrop of rough weather, was recovered on Wednesday from the dense forests of the Paracha Khatta area.

Notably, the police had maintained that the climbers went to Siran Valley on Friday to summit Musa Da Musalla without obtaining a no-objection certificate from the police or other relevant departments.

"Forest authorities and locals spotted the body in a gorge in the dense forest. It appeared that the foreign mountaineer. This person had separated from his British friend regarding four days ago while descending from Musa Da Musalla peak, slipped against the backdrop of dense fog and rainy weather, " noted Nasir Mehmood Satti, the deputy inspector general of police (DIG), who additionally led the search operation.

As well as members of the local community, recovered the body and shifted it to Mandachucha, where the police had established a base camp during the four-day operation, the search team, comprising police, Forest Department and Rescue 1122 authorities.

DIG Satti remarked the family of the deceased foreign mountaineer had reached Islamabad and that his department would extend them full backing and cooperation in completing the legal formalities.

"The Hazara police are committed to the safety and protection of foreign visitors, and the search operation has been completed in highly difficult terrain and amid bad weather, " he remarked.

In practice, a police official who took part in the operation remarked it took four hours to bring Alexander's body to the base camp, from where it was transported to a health facility for medico-legal formalities.

"It would be premature to say what exactly caused the death. We discovered the body in a gorge in a challenging and densely forested area; it appeared that the mountaineer had slipped since of fog and rain, " he went on.

"According to the preliminary statement of the local guide. It cledwyn additionally confirmed, the deceased foreigner was far ahead of them against the backdrop of the fog and heavy rain. They realised at the base camp that Alexander had not arrived, and then the owner of a local resort informed us, " he continued.

Notably, the foreigners had gone to Siran Valley on August 28 to summit Musa Da Musalla peak without obtaining a no-objection certificate from the police and other relevant departments.

Notably, the search operation, involving more than 250 police personnel assisted by two groups of mountaineers trained for such operations, members of the indigenous community familiar with navigating Siran Valley, and Forest Department authorities, continued for three days despite bad weather and dense fog.

Taken together, the developments around body of missing Irish mountaineer recovered from Siran Valley in KP point to a situation that is still moving, and the coming days should bring more clarity.