Pakistan - November 2024

At the end of November, thousands of supporters of the opposition Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party marched from Peshawar to Islamabad (160 kms) to protest for the release of imprisoned former Prime Minister Imran Khan. Between 24 and 26 November, police and army forces arrested over 1,000 protestors. The protests are part of continuous and escalating clashes between Khan supporters and state forces. The recent protests are particularly remarkable for directly defying the military, the intense backlash from state forces and their sheer scale. Police and army forces locked down Islamabad, banning all assemblies, blocking the roads with shipping containers, and closing all educational institutions. Internet and telecommunication services were partially shut down as well. Under recent legislation, protests in certain parts of Islamabad, called “red zones”, have been severely limited, while punishments for participating in illegal assemblies have greatly increased.

Sources: Straits Times (1), Straits Times (2), Al Jazeera, Deutsche Welle (DW), International IDEA, Dawn