Tear gas, open fire, and midnight mayhem: Pakistan crackdown sparks political party outrage
by Surya PrakashSecurity forces launched a midnight operation to disperse supporters of jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan in Pakistan. The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party condemned the crackdown as a “massacre” under a “fascist military regime.”
The incident occurred in D-Chowk and the adjacent Blue Area business district in Islamabad on November 26.
Visuals showed security personnel using tear gas to clear protestors by midnight. The army forces were seen firing at the protesters, and as soon as they heard the sound of firing, the protesters started running here and there. Security forces were taking protesters after arresting them. Protesters claimed that the army set fire to the vehicle in which the protesters had come.
According to reports, over 450 protesters were arrested, with further detentions expected. PTI alleged that security forces fired live ammunition with the intent to kill. The protests began on Sunday as part of a march to the capital, with PTI supporters clashing with police on Tuesday, resulting in six police deaths and dozens injured.
Khan’s wife, Bushra Bibi, and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur led the march, vowing to continue the protest until Khan’s release.
Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi stated that roads and internet services in the capital would be restored by morning, and schools would reopen. He accused the protestors of planning to attack government buildings and officials. Information Minister Atta Tarar mocked PTI’s “final call,” claiming the protest leaders abandoned their followers and fled.
PTI denounced the operation, alleging mass casualties and urging international condemnation of what it called the regime’s erosion of democracy. Khan, jailed since August 2023, had issued a “final call” for protests against the government’s policies and alleged suppression of dissent. The situation remains tense as Pakistan grapples with the fallout from the crackdown and escalating political unrest.