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Karakoram Dispatch

Body of missing Pakistani climber Sohail Sakhi recovered from Broad Peak

Andoram Desk13 August 2026 · 12:00 UTC · 7 sources
Body of missing Pakistani climber Sohail Sakhi recovered from Broad Peak
Photograph: Anne Dirkse via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

A team of local volunteers recovered the body of Pakistani climber Sohail Sakhi from Broad Peak on Thursday, after it had been missing following an avalanche that struck the mountain on July 30 Arab News Pakistan Geo News. Sakhi was one of 10 mountaineers killed in the avalanche, which hit an international expedition led by climber Nirmal Purja ExplorersWeb. Two climbers remain unaccounted for, according to the Alpine Club of Pakistan.

What happened

The avalanche struck on July 30 as the 10-member international expedition moved between Camp 2 and Camp 3, according to ExplorersWeb ExplorersWeb. The climbers’ trackers had placed the group at around 6,600 metres shortly before the slide. ExplorersWeb reported that the avalanche swept the entire party hundreds of metres down a west-facing gully, in places more than 1,500 vertical metres. According to ExplorersWeb, four commercial teams had remained on the mountain for a shared summit push after earlier climbers departed because of heavy snow and rising avalanche danger. The slide cut off contact between the expedition and base camp, according to Arab News Pakistan and Geo News Arab News Pakistan Geo News. Purja’s company later confirmed that there were no survivors.

The people involved

The expedition was led by Nirmal Purja, described by Arab News Pakistan as a renowned climber and by Geo News as a 43-year-old British-Nepali climber Arab News Pakistan Geo News. Arab News Pakistan reported that the international expedition included climbers from Nepal, Oman, Pakistan, China, Britain and the United States. Sohail Sakhi, a Pakistani climber, was among those killed ExplorersWeb. His body was found by a group of volunteers from the Shigar region, identified by Geo News and ExplorersWeb as Muhammad Nadeem, Muhammad Bashir and Abu Zar, also spelled Abuzar. The two climbers still missing have been identified by ExplorersWeb as American climber Sarah Mallory Geis and Nepali guide Nawang Thindu Sherpa.

The response

The volunteers who found Sakhi’s body searched for and located it on their own initiative, according to Geo News and ExplorersWeb Geo News ExplorersWeb. Other rescuers later joined the effort and helped carry the body down to base camp, Arab News Pakistan reported Arab News Pakistan. ExplorersWeb reported that Sakhi’s backpack and tracker had already been found prior to the discovery of his body, which was located at an elevation of 5,600 metres near Camp 1. Geo News reported that his remains were then moved from Camp One to Broad Peak’s base camp. The Alpine Club of Pakistan confirmed the identification of the body, according to ExplorersWeb, and the club separately expressed condolences to Sakhi’s family and to the mountaineering community, Geo News reported. Each outlet reported that the body was expected to be flown onward by helicopter weather permitting, though the destinations described differ slightly: Arab News Pakistan said it would go to a regional air base, Geo News specified Skardu via an Army Aviation helicopter, and ExplorersWeb said a Pakistan Army helicopter would fly the body to Skardu. Search teams had recovered eight bodies including Sakhi’s as of the Arab News Pakistan report, and Geo News noted that on August 6 the bodies of five mountaineers were shifted to Skardu. ExplorersWeb reported that, over the days following the avalanche, seven bodies were brought down, including that of Nirmal Purja. Rescue operations were continuing to search for the two missing climbers, Geo News reported, though ExplorersWeb noted that continued bad weather and the risk of further avalanches have made further recovery work impossible for now. ExplorersWeb also reported that only a disembodied leg belonging to Geis has been found and identified, while Nawang’s body has been spotted but lies in terrain described as dangerous. According to ExplorersWeb, rescue efforts after the avalanche were slow to get underway, and by the time teams reached the site the following day it was already clear there were no survivors.

Background and context

The recovery of Sakhi’s body came two days after a candlelight vigil was held in Islamabad to honour the climbers, attended by mountaineers, diplomats and members of civil society, according to Arab News Pakistan Arab News Pakistan. Broad Peak rises 8,051 metres (26,414 feet) above sea level in Pakistan’s Karakoram range and is described by Arab News Pakistan as the world’s 12th-highest mountain, lying near K2, the world’s second-highest peak. Arab News Pakistan reported that mountaineering accidents are common in northern Pakistan, which is home to some of the world’s highest mountains. Arab News Pakistan reported that authorities, after confirming all 10 climbers had died, described the avalanche as one of Pakistan’s deadliest mountaineering accidents in recent years.

What is not yet confirmed

It remains unclear exactly when or whether recovery operations for the two missing climbers, Sarah Mallory Geis and Nawang Thindu Sherpa, will resume, given the weather conditions and avalanche risk described by ExplorersWeb ExplorersWeb. The precise circumstances that caused the slide itself, beyond the group’s position between Camp 2 and Camp 3 and their tracked altitude beforehand, have not been detailed. The discrepancy between outlets over the exact destination of the helicopter flight carrying Sakhi’s body, whether to an unspecified regional air base or specifically to Skardu, has not been resolved Arab News Pakistan Geo News. It is also not confirmed how the remaining search efforts will be coordinated or staffed going forward, beyond the role already played by volunteers from Shigar and the Alpine Club of Pakistan.

Sources referenced

Written by Andoram by combining 3 independently published reports, each linked above. We synthesise facts and reproduce no source text.

Coverage timeline

This page is an automatically compiled index of third-party reporting. Headlines and links belong to their publishers; Andoram reproduces no article text. Last compiled 14 Aug 2026 12:15 UTC.

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