KARACHI: Pakistan police on Saturday arrested multiple opposition members ahead of a planned protest by jailed former prime minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) opposition parties to mark the first anniversary of the Feb. 8, 2024 national election, which they say were rigged to benefit their opponents.
Pakistan’s general election was marred by a mobile Internet shutdown and unusually delayed results. The polls threw up a hung National Assembly and were followed by weeks of protests by opposition parties over allegations of rigging and vote count fraud.
The caretaker government, which oversaw the electoral exercise, and the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), deny the charges, however, the US House of Representatives and several European countries have called on Islamabad to open a probe into the allegations — a move Pakistan has thus far rejected.
Last month, Khan called on PTI leaders and supporters to mark Feb. 8 as a “Black Day” and hold protests across the country to raise their voice against alleged election irregularities. Khan’s announcement was followed by a similar call from JI leader Hafiz Naeem-ur-Rehman over the “stolen mandate.”
“Disgusting to see Meher Bano Qureshi, her MPA [member of provincial assembly] and workers being arrested for taking part in a peaceful protest [in Multan],” PTI’s Sayed Zulfikar Bukhari said on X, sharing footage of Qureshi and others inside what appeared to be a police van.
The PTI also confirmed the arrest of its member, Khawaja Farooq, and others by police in Azad Kashmir.
Opposition supporters have taken to streets in several cities across the country to register their protest on Saturday evening, following the circulation of video messages by their leaders that urged supporters to mobilize.
Khan’s PTI planned to hold a major protest rally at Minar-e-Pakistan, a historical monument in Lahore that symbolizes the country’s independence, but it was denied official permission by the Punjab provincial administration, led by the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party.
The PML-N administration also imposed Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, banning large gatherings across the province to prevent political demonstrations. The PTI is also expected to hold a rally in Swabi, located in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, where the party remains in power.
Meanwhile, the JI plans to stage a protest outside the ECP office in Karachi. The party did not win any National Assembly seats in the general elections but secured two provincial seats in the Sindh Assembly and one in the Balochistan Assembly.
PTI candidates contested the Feb. 8 elections as independents after the party was barred from the polls. While they won the most seats, they fell short of the majority needed to form a government, which was instead formed by a coalition of rival political parties led by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
Police arrest opposition members ahead of protest to mark anniversary of Pakistan national polls
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Police arrest opposition members ahead of protest to mark anniversary of Pakistan national polls
- Pakistan’s general election was marred by a mobile Internet shutdown and unusually delayed results, throwing up a hung parliament
- Ex-PM Imran Khan, Jamaat-e-Islami’s Hafiz Naeem-ur-Rehman asked their supporters to mark Feb. 8 as a ‘Black Day’ by holding protests
Pakistan, Saudi Arabia reaffirm commitment to strengthen bilateral ties
- Pakistan’s deputy premier and foreign minister meets Saudi ambassador to Pakistan in Islamabad
- Saudi Arabia was actively involved in de-escalating tensions between nuclear-armed India and Pakistan
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Saudi Arabia reaffirmed their commitment to further strengthen bilateral relations between the two countries, Pakistan’s foreign ministry said on Monday.
The development took place as Saudi Ambassador Nawaf bin Said Al-Malki called on Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar in Islamabad. Their meeting took place days after Pakistan and India agreed to a ceasefire on Saturday after exchanging lethal missile, drone and artillery strikes.
“They discussed the full gamut of bilateral ties and reaffirmed their commitment to further strengthen already existing fraternal relations across all sectors,” Pakistan’s foreign ministry said about Dar’s meeting with Malki.
Saudi Arabia was one of the few countries that were actively engaged in de-escalating tensions between India and Pakistan last week after the former launched missile strikes against the latter on Wednesday.
Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan spoke to Dar over the phone on May 10, expressing condolences over the loss of lives due to India’s strikes. The two had spoken after Saudi Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Adel Al-Jubeir visited Pakistan after his surprise stop in New Delhi for talks with Indian officials.
Saudi Arabia and Pakistan share close diplomatic and strategic relations. The Kingdom has extended significant support to Pakistan during prolonged economic challenges faced by Islamabad in recent years, including external financing and assistance with International Monetary Fund (IMF) loan programs.
The two regional and economic allies signed 34 agreements worth $2.8 billion in October last year. The Kingdom is home to over 2.7 million Pakistani expatriates, serving as the top destination for remittances for cash-strapped Pakistan.
India reopens 32 airports after ceasefire with Pakistan
- From Srinagar in Indian-administered Kashmir to Bhuj in the western state of Gujarat, airports now available for civil operations “with immediate effect“
- They were closed last week after fierce fighting erupted between India and Pakistan for four days, setting off global alarm it could spiral into full-blown war
NEW DELHI: India reopened 32 airports on Monday following a weekend ceasefire that ended the worst fighting with neighboring Pakistan since 1999.
The Airport Authority of India said the 32 — from Srinagar in Indian-administered Kashmir to Bhuj in the western state of Gujarat — were now available for civil operations “with immediate effect.”
They were closed last week after fierce fighting erupted between India and Pakistan for four days, setting off global alarm it could spiral into full-blown war.
Leading Indian airline IndiGo said it would “progressively commence operations on the previously closed routes.”
The truce was announced on Saturday, but both sides immediately accused the other of breaking it.
However, both India and Pakistan said the border areas were calm on Monday.
Pakistan stock market opens at single-day high, recovering losses after India standoff
- Benchmark KSE-100 Index opens at 117,104.11, up by 9,929.48 points, largest single-day gain on record
- Pakistani stocks also rally following the IMF’s approval on Friday of a loan program review for Pakistan
KARACHI: The benchmark KSE-100 Index at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) opened at 117,104.11 points on Monday, up by 9,929.48 points, marking the largest single-day increase in index points after a weekend ceasefire agreement with India.
Pakistan’s stocks rallied after US President Donald Trump announced a ceasefire between nuclear-armed neighbors India and Pakistan. Both states had exchanged missile, drone and artillery strikes last week amid surging tensions.
The development is a breath of fresh air for the stock market, which saw a record-breaking 6,482-point plunge last Thursday. This was the largest single-day decline in the index’s history as investors feared an escalation in the conflict between India and Pakistan.
“Pakistan Stock Market opens at a single-day record,” Khurram Schehzad, adviser to the finance minister, said in a statement. “A new record for a single day, way more than the single-day decline it recorded last week.”
Pakistani stocks also rallied after the International Monetary Fund (IMF) approved a loan program review for Pakistan on Friday. The IMF nod helped unlock around $1 billion in much-needed funds for Islamabad and greenlit a new $1.4 billion bailout despite New Delhi’s objections.
“Pakistan has much more to offer, given IMF’s board approval of $2.4 billion, further decline in interest rates, Pakistan’s measured and responsible response in both its narrative and actions on-ground,” Schehzad noted.
The official said these developments and a potential “positive” spillover effect of a likely settlement of the US-China tariff dispute, had caught investors’ eye and caused the stocks to rally.
Schehzad noted that renewed investor confidence, enhanced IMF funding and support, a low inflation rate and stable currency parities in the region all position Pakistan “for a more meaningful economic upside moving forward.”
Earlier during the day, a five percent increase in the KSE-30 index from the previous trading day’s close led to a market halt as per stock market regulations. All equity and equity-based markets were suspended, as per a notification of the PSX.
Markets reopened around 10:42 a.m. local time (0542 GMT).
Military operations chiefs of India, Pakistan to hold talks today as ceasefire holds
- Fragile ceasefire appeared to be in place after both sides blamed the other for initial violations on Saturday
- US officials have said India and Pakistan had also agreed to hold talks on a broad set of issues at a neutral site
ISLAMABAD: The military operations chiefs of India and Pakistan will hold talks today, Monday, two days after a ceasefire put a sudden stop to a conflict that had seemed to be spiraling alarmingly.
A fragile 48-hour-old truce appeared to be holding on Monday after both sides blamed the other for initial violations on Saturday night, hours after the US-brokered deal was first announced. There were no reports of explosions or projectiles overnight, after some initial ceasefire violations, with the Indian Army saying Sunday was the first peaceful night in recent days along their de facto Line of Control border, although some schools remain closed.
Saturday’s ceasefire followed four days of intense fighting with drones and missiles and gun fire exchanges across the Line of Control that divides the disputed Kashmir valley into parts administered by India and Pakistan.
“The directors general of military operations will talk again on May 12 at 1200 hours,” Vikram Misri, the Indian Foreign Secretary, said on Saturday as he announced that both sides had agreed to stop all firing and military action on land and in the air and sea.
Since Wednesday last week, the arch rivals had targeted each other’s military installations with missiles and drones, killing dozens of civilians as relations turned sour after India blamed Pakistan for a militant attack that killed 26 tourists on April 22. Pakistan denies the accusations and has called for a neutral investigation.
India said it launched strikes on nine ‘terrorist infrastructure’ sites in Pakistan and Pakistani Kashmir on Wednesday, but Islamabad has said those were civilian sites, hitting back with missiles and drones in a confrontation that went on for four days.
Saturday’s truce was first announced by US President Donald Trump. US officials also said the two nations had agreed to hold talks on a broad set of issues at a neutral site.
On Monday, state broadcaster Radio Pakistan quoted Pakistan’s Defense Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif as saying Islamabad would prioritize the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT), the Kashmir dispute and “terrorism” issues in any potential talks with India.
Before the fighting broke out on Wednesday, the two nations had already announced a raft of punitive measures following the April 22 attack in Indian-administered Kashmir. India suspended the Indus Waters Treaty unilaterally, with Pakistan warning it would see any attempt to stop or redirect the flow of its waters “an act of war.”
The treaty is an international agreement between India and Pakistan, brokered by the World Bank in 1960, that divides the waters of the Indus River basin between the two countries. Specifically, it allocates the eastern rivers (Ravi, Beas, and Sutlej) to India and the western rivers (Indus, Jhelum, and Chenab) to Pakistan.
Kashmir has been a bone of contention between the two countries since independence from British colonial rule in 1947. Both countries claim the Muslim-majority region in full but govern only parts of it. They have fought two of their three wars since 1947 over the disputed territory.
“When asked about potential talks, he [Asif] emphasized that Pakistan would prioritize three major issues of contention including Indus Waters Treaty, Kashmir and terrorism which need to be resolved to ensure peace in the region,” state broadcaster Radio Pakistan reported.
While Islamabad has thanked Washington for facilitating Saturday’s ceasefire and welcomed Trump’s offer to mediate on the Kashmir dispute with India, New Delhi has not commented on US involvement in the truce or talks at a neutral site.
- With inputs from Reuters
India says killed over 100 militants in Pakistan strikes, Islamabad says 26 Indian military targets hit
- Lt. Gen. Rajiv Ghai, director general of military operations, said India’s armed forces struck nine militant infrastructure and training facilities
- Pakistan military spokesman Lt. Gen. Ahmad Sharif Chaudhry said army targeted total of 26 Indian military installations in response to India’s missile strikes
ISLAMABAD: India’s military strikes into Azad Kashmir and Pakistan last week killed more than 100 militants including prominent leaders, the head of India’s military operations said on Sunday.
Lt. Gen. Rajiv Ghai, the director general of military operations, said India’s armed forces struck nine militant infrastructure and training facilities, including sites of the Lashkar-e-Taiba group that India blames for carrying out major militant strikes in India and the disputed region of Kashmir.
“We achieved total surprise,” Ghai said at a news conference in New Delhi, adding Pakistan’s response was “erratic and rattled.”
The two countries agreed to a truce on Saturday after talks to defuse their most serious military confrontation in decades. The two armies exchanged gunfire, artillery strikes, missiles and drones that killed dozens of people.
As part of the ceasefire, the nuclear-armed neighbors agreed to immediately stop all military action on land, in the air and at sea. On Sunday, Pakistan’s military said it did not ask for a ceasefire, as claimed by India, but rather it was India that had sought the ceasefire.
At a televised news conference, Lt. Gen. Ahmad Sharif Chaudhry said Pakistan’s armed forces targeted a total of 26 Indian military installations in response to India’s missile strikes which were launched before dawn Wednesday.
He said the military had vowed it would respond to the Indian aggression, and it has fulfilled its commitment to the nation. Sharif warned that any threat to Pakistan’s sovereignty or territorial integrity would be met with a “comprehensive, retributive, and decisive” response.
He said Pakistan exercised “maximum restraint” during the counterstrike, employing medium-range missiles and other munitions, and that no civilian areas were targeted inside India.
Competing claims of how many killed
The escalation in violence began last week after a gun massacre of tourists in Indian-controlled Kashmir on April 22. India blamed the attack on Pakistan, which denied any involvement.
Ghai said at least 35 to 40 Pakistani soldiers were killed in clashes along the Line of Control, the de facto border that divides the disputed Kashmir region between India and Pakistan. Five Indian soldiers were also killed, he said.
Pakistan’s Information Minister Attaullah Tarar on Thursday said his country’s armed forces had killed 40 to 50 Indian soldiers along the Line of Control.
Following India’s Wednesday strikes, Pakistan sent drones multiple times in many locations in Kashmir and Indian cities that were neutralized, said Air Marshal A.K. Bharti, the operations head of the Indian air force. He said India responded with “significant and game-changing strikes” Saturday, hitting Pakistan’s air bases.
Bharti refused to comment on Pakistani claims of shooting down five Indian fighter jets, but said “we are in a combat scenario and losses are a part of combat.” He claimed India also “downed (a) few planes” but did not offer any evidence.
The Associated Press could not independently verify all the actions attributed to India or Pakistan.
Saturday’s ceasefire was shaken just hours later by overnight fighting in disputed Kashmir, as each side accused each other of repeatedly violating the deal. Drones were also spotted Saturday night over Indian-controlled Kashmir and the western state of Gujarat, according to Indian officials.
People on both sides of the Line of Control reported heavy exchanges of fire between Indian and Pakistani troops. The fighting subsided by Sunday morning.
In the Poonch area of Indian-administered Kashmir, people said the intense shelling from the past few days had traumatized them.
“Most people ran as shells were being fired,” said college student Sosan Zehra, who returned home Sunday. “It was completely chaotic.”
In Pakistan-controlled Kashmir’s Neelum Valley, which is 3 kilometers (2 miles) from the Line of Control, residents said there were exchanges of fire and heavy shelling after the ceasefire began.
“We were happy about the announcement but, once again, the situation feels uncertain,” said Mohammad Zahid.
Indian and Pakistan officials to speak Monday
US President Donald Trump was the first to post about the ceasefire deal, announcing it on his Truth Social platform. Indian and Pakistani officials confirmed the news shortly after.
Pakistan has thanked the US, and especially Trump, several times for facilitating the ceasefire.
India has not said anything about Trump or the US since the deal was announced. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired a meeting on Sunday with top government and military officials.
India and Pakistan’s top military officials are scheduled to speak today, Monday.
India and Pakistan have fought daily since Wednesday along the rugged and mountainous Line of Control, which is marked by razor wire coils, watchtowers and bunkers that snake across foothills populated by villages, tangled bushes and forests.
They have routinely blamed the other for starting the skirmishes, while insisting they themselves were only retaliating.
Kashmir is split between the two countries and claimed by both in its entirety.
They have fought two of their three wars over the region and their ties have been shaped by conflict, aggressive diplomacy and mutual suspicion, mostly due to their competing claims
