The Gilgit-Baltistan government has backtracked from its statement that a 90-year-old man from Diamer district died from coronavirus.

GB Health Secretary Rashid Ahmed had initially confirmed at a news conference that the patient died from COVID-19.

Minutes later, GB government spokesperson Faizullah Firaq then said in a "clarification statement" that although the patient had tested positive for COVID-19, he also had pneumonia and therefore the cause of his death was not clear.

In a subsequent statement, Firaq said a report from the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology (AFIP), Rawalpindi, showed that the deceased, in fact, did not have COVID-19. He said the patient died from pneumonia.

A copy of the report provided by Firaq of the purported patient, seen by Dawn.com, states that the "80-year-old" man did not have coronavirus.