I was in Islamabad the day before . I have only been there 3 times , but there is NO procedure which takes you to the North of the runway , only after take-off with its left turn out ( a no brainer ) and the G/A from 30 which also invilves a left turn . Any circling approach to 30 is from the South.
The accident scene is due North of the airfield ( maybe 350 degrees ), past the northern suburbs , only the slopes after that . What the hell were they doing there at all , especially in an aircraft with EGPWS and its Data base . Even the 737-200s do not make a habit of flying into high ground , of which there is a lot in North Pakistan.