ISLAMABAD: Public life in the Pakistani twin cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi remained disrupted for a second day on Saturday, with roads blocked, mobile Internet suspended and reports of clashes between police and supporters of a religio-political party.
The Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) this week urged its supporters to stage a protest outside the United States (US) embassy in Islamabad to express solidarity with Palestine, prompting authorities to raid its headquarters in Lahore.
Clashes have since been reported in Lahore, Islamabad, Rawalpindi and other cities, where police have placed shipping containers and fired tear gas to keep the protesters from marching to Islamabad. Protesters hurled stones at officers in response.
TLP is known for street mobilization and agitational politics, often invoking blasphemy-related issues or religious grievances. Since its rise in 2017, the group has repeatedly staged mass sit-ins and marches to Islamabad, many of which have paralyzed the capital and key highways for days.
“No group will be allowed to march on Islamabad or any other city under any circumstances,” Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi said as he reviewed security arrangements in Islamabad’s Faizabad area on Friday night.
