Severe weather has thwarted attempts to retrieve the body of a UK-based gynaecologist from Spantik mountain in Pakistan, authorities have said.Asma Mushtaq, 34, successfully summited the 7,027m Spantik peak in the Karakoram range, but died from high-altitude sickness during her descent on Thursday, the Alpine Club of Pakistan said.An operation to bring her body down from Camp 3 to Base Camp has been hampered by bad weather. Pakistan’s information minister Attaullah Tarar had said rescue crews were expected to reach Camp 3 on Monday and bring down the body. But heavy snowfall and strong winds forced the rescuers to turn back after almost reaching Camp 3 and return to Camp 2. Mr Tarar said a helicopter had been authorised for the retrieval operation. “Whatever can be done in these circumstances will be done,” the minister said, adding that alternative arrangements were also in place.He also said officials coordinating the operation were keeping prime minister Shehbaz Sharif updated about it.Asma Mushtaq specialised in obstetrics and gynaecology (Instagram/@drasmaexplores)Mushtaq, originally from Lahore, Pakistan, worked in the UK as a doctor specialising in obstetrics and gynaecology.She summited the mountain in “good health”, but suffered a “serious high-altitude medical emergency” during her descent at about 6,400m which caused her death, the Alpine Club said. “The circumstances surrounding her death, as well as the conduct and response of the expedition company, will be fully investigated once the teams are safely down and her body has been recovered,” the club said. “Any necessary action will follow the findings of that investigation.”Mushtaq regularly posted about her mountaineering exploits on social media. She had completed challenging climbs, including that of the 4,080m Himalayan peak of Musa Ka Musallah in Pakistan. She had also been involved in expeditions to Rupal and Arandu. This is the second high-profile operation this month by Pakistan to retrieve the body of a climber. In early August, the South Asian nation grabbed global headlines after launching an operation to recover the corpses of 10 climbers, including mountaineering legend Nirmal Purja, who were killed after an avalanche on Broad Peak. It took almost six days to bring down the bodies in one of the more demanding recoveries from Broad Peak. The operation involved the use of military helicopters, long ground carries in dangerous conditions and coordination among Nepali and Pakistani rescuers as well as the Pakistan army.