Pakistani police fired tear gas and used batons on Monday as thousands of supporters of jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan stormed the capital in protests demanding his release.
About 8,000 protesters led by Khan’s wife in his stronghold of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province fought fierce battles with police in riot gear on the outskirts of Islamabad, officials and the party said.
Pakistan’s government has deployed thousands of police and paramilitary forces and placed the capital under permanent lockdown starting Saturday, as Khan’s supporters threatened to release him by force.
Protesters, backed by the provincial government, began marching in the capital of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province on Sunday and spent the night on a highway about 50 kilometers from Islamabad, Khan’s party said.
Police confronted them as soon as they attempted to march into the capital on Monday.
At least 50 protesters and 20 police officers were injured in the clashes. Police said marchers threw rocks at officers.
Information Minister Ataullah Tarar said tensions remained in Islamabad as Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko arrived in the capital for a three-day state visit to sign economic and energy agreements.
Last month, as Pakistan hosted the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit, workers from Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (Pakistan Movement for Justice, PTI) clashed with riot police and held a rally in the capital.
Khan has been in prison since August 2023 and is on trial for inciting violence on May 9 of that year. This was the day his supporters went on the rampage and attacked military facilities.
Khan denies the charges. All of his convictions have been suspended or overturned in recent months.
Supporters of former prime minister and opposition Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan gathered in Peshawar to attend a protest demanding his release. Khan, who is currently jailed, urged his supporters to participate in a ‘peaceful protest’ at D-Chowk, stressing that they should oppose the ‘unlawful’ nature of his imprisonment. Hussein Ali/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa
Supporters of former prime minister and opposition Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan gathered in Peshawar to attend a protest demanding his release. Khan, who is currently jailed, urged his supporters to participate in a ‘peaceful protest’ at D-Chowk, stressing that they should oppose the ‘unlawful’ nature of his imprisonment. Hussein Ali/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa
