Pakistani authorities sealed off Islamabad and suspended cellphone services on Friday to prevent an anti-government rally organized by supporters of jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan.
The protest is part of ongoing demonstrations demanding Khan’s release and contesting the legitimacy of the coalition government led by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, which Khan’s supporters claim was established through a fraudulent election.
Authorities used shipping containers to barricade Islamabad’s entry points, and police enforced a ban on gatherings, bolstered by paramilitary forces.
Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi defended the security measures, asserting they were necessary to prevent unrest, particularly with the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit set for October 15-16, featuring key international figures, including Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and Chinese Premier Li Qiang.
Naqvi emphasized that any chaos would send a negative message to the international community ahead of the summit. Despite this, Khan, who has been in prison since August 2023, called on his supporters via X (formerly Twitter) to gather peacefully outside parliament, claiming the struggle was entering a decisive phase.
With schools closed and cellphone services suspended in both Islamabad and Rawalpindi, police issued warnings against any attempts to disturb the peace, indicating a zero-tolerance approach to the protests.
Khan, despite his imprisonment, remains a significant political figure, with his party having secured the most seats in the February general election, although falling short of forming a government.
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