Sir: Over 450 people have been killed in a deadly earthquake which struck the Iran-Iraq border on Saturday. Over 70,000 people have been injured. The vast majority of the deaths and injuries have occurred in Iran, which is our next door neighbour. Apart from being our neighbour, Iran is also a fellow Muslim country. There have also been several diplomatic missions to Iran very recently to improve relations which have been strained at certain points in recent history. I strongly believe Pakistan should continue to work to improve relations with Iran. Since Iran has been struck by a devastating tragedy, it is Pakistan’s duty to help in whatever capacity it can. Pakistan should send any kind of help it can spare; whether financial, medical or material. Pakistan has suffered from it’s own share of natural disasters so the Pakistani government, army and people should be able to relate to Iranis in their time of need. I request the federal government to extend a helping hand to Iran out of basic human concern and so that bilateral relations between the two nations can improve further. RAFAQAT ZAIDI Karachi Published in Daily Times, November 17th 2017.