ISLAMABAD: Authorities have deployed troops and imposed a three-day curfew in the northern Pakistani cities of Gilgit and Skardu, officials said on Monday, after more than a dozen people were killed in clashes over the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in US-Israeli strikes.
Pakistan’s northern Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) region, where the two cities are located, saw violent clashes on Sunday as protesters set fire to and vandalized several buildings, including United Nations (UN) regional offices, army-run school, software technology park and an Aga Khan Rural Support Programme office.
Clashes with law enforcement agencies caused the deaths of at least 14 people in the region, among them a soldier, GB Caretaker Information Minister Ghulam Abbas confirmed told Arab News. He said around 50 others were injured.
“In wake of prevailing precarious law-and-order situation... it is expected that the situation may deteriorate further in Gilgit-Baltistan, particularly in District Gilgit and Skardu," Deputy Home Secretary Ghulam Hasan said in a letter to the regional commander on Monday.
“It is therefore requested that Pakistan Army troops may be deployed in District Gilgit and Skardu and curfew may be imposed for an initial period of three days (2nd, 3rd and 4th March) to prevent any untoward incident and danger to human life and property.”
