ISLAMABAD: The Pakistani government has called on the powerful military to deploy in the capital Islamabad after violence broke out Saturday when security forces attempted to disperse a weeks-long sit-in, the Interior Ministry said, according to an AFP report.
The request was made by Islamabad Capital Territory authorities, according to an Interior Ministry order, which said the federal government had authorized the deployment of “sufficient troops” to “control law and order” in the city until further notice.
There was no immediate comment from military officials.
The order came after Pakistani police clashed violently with hardline religious protesters in Islamabad Saturday, leaving at least one person dead and more than 130 injured.
Law enforcement agencies failed to break up a three-week sit-in in Islamabad
The police used tear gas and rubber bullets in an attempt to disperse over 2,000 protesters at the Faizabad interchange, the main gateway between Islamabad and Rawalpindi. But the operation failed to shift the protesters, even though, according to a police spokesman, around 9,000 police and paramilitary troops took part in the operation and arrested around 200 protesters.
The government had declared a state of emergency in all hospitals in the federal capital and Rawalpindi, and reports stated that over 200 people were injured — from both sides — during the clashes.
The mass protests have been ongoing since Nov. 8, with hard-line extremists demanding the resignation of Minister of Law Zahid Hamid for his alleged involvement in a change in the wording of an oath for lawmakers that declares Prophet Muhammad as God’s final prophet, by omitting the clauses pertaining to the official status of Ahmadis.
The government quickly restored the oath to its original wording, and have announced that the change occurred because of a “clerical error” which had nothing to do with Hamid, but the right-wing protesters are still demanding that the law minister be forced to step down for what they claim amounts to blasphemy.
Saturday’s operation continued for at least four hours. Protesters, who disabled nearby CCTV cameras, reportedly fought back with rocks, iron rods and clubs against law enforcement personnel, and set at least four police vehicles on fire.
The stiff resistance meant the police were unable to reach the stage from which the leaders of the sit-in — including the wheelchair-bound hard-line cleric Khadim Hussain Rizvi, leader of the Tehreek Labbaik Ya Rasool Allah party (TLYR) — were directing their followers to attack the security forces.
Shortly after the police launched their operation in Islamabad, thousands of TLYR followers took to the streets in other parts of Pakistan, including Karachi, Faisalabad, Lahore, Narowal and Multan, and blocked several of the country’s main highways.
In an attempt to regain control the situation, the government has taken all private television channels off the air and has blocked social media platforms including Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.
Chief of Army Staff Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa telephoned Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi and suggested the Islamabad sit-in should be handled peacefully, according to Inter-Services Public Relations, the media wing of the Pakistan Armed Forces.
“COAS telephoned PM. Suggested to handle Isb Dharna peacefully avoiding violence from both sides as it is not in national interest & cohesion,” Maj. Gen. Asif Ghafoor, director general of the PR wing, tweeted, after the operation had been called off.
Dr. Rasul Bakhsh Rais, a renowned political analyst, told Arab News that the situation could spiral out of control if the protesters succeeded in sustaining their demonstrations across the country for another week.
“If political parties like Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf and Pakistan People’s Party jump in to exploit the situation, then definitely the government will be left with no option but to announce early elections,” he predicted.
Regarding the suspension of television channels and social media platforms, he said the government is simply making the situation worse for itself, and that it could be paving the way for its own ouster.
Minister of State for Interior Muhammad Tallal Chaudhry told Arab News that his ministry has written separate letters to all provincial governments saying they should ensure security for members of the ruling party, ministers and their families.
“I myself have been a target of hate speech by mullahs and I definitely feared for my life,” he said, adding that the extremists have been inciting their followers against ministers, ruling party members, and their families through hate speech. Chaudhry explained that Hamid and his family have been told to restrict their movement “and be extra-careful until the situation calms down.”
The minister added that the government sees its refusal to bow to the protesters’ demands as “a national cause, while fully understanding the consequences of resisting them.”
Pakistan protests: Army called in to ‘control law and order’
Pakistan protests: Army called in to ‘control law and order’
Charlotte airport workers plan to strike during busy Thanksgiving travel week
- Employees of ABM and Prospect Airport Services cast ballots Friday to authorize the work stoppage in North Carolina
- Workers say they previously raised the alarm about their growing inability to afford basic necessities, including food and housing
Employees of ABM and Prospect Airport Services cast ballots Friday to authorize the work stoppage in North Carolina, which is set to begin Monday at 5 a.m.
Officials with Service Employees International Union announced the impending strike in a statement early Monday, saying the workers would demand “an end to poverty wages and respect on the job during the holiday travel season.”
ABM and Prospect Airport Services contract with American Airlines to provide services including cleaning airplane interiors, removing trash and escorting passengers in wheelchairs.
Workers say they previously raised the alarm about their growing inability to afford basic necessities, including food and housing. They described living paycheck to paycheck, unable to cover expenses like car repairs while performing jobs that keep countless planes running on schedule.
“We’re on strike today because this is our last resort. We can’t keep living like this,” ABM cabin cleaner Priscilla Hoyle said in a statement. “We’re taking action because our families can’t survive.”
Several hundred workers were expected to walk off the job and continue the work stoppage throughout Monday.
Most of them earn between $12.50 and $19 an hour, which is well below the living wage for a single person with no children in the Charlotte area, union officials said.
Charlotte Douglas International Airport officials have said this holiday travel season is expected to be the busiest on record, with an estimated 1.02 million passengers departing the airport between last Thursday and the Monday after Thanksgiving.
In addition to walking off the job, striking workers plan to hold an 11 a.m. rally and a 1 p.m. “Strikesgiving” lunch “in place of the Thanksgiving meal that many of the workers won’t be able to afford later this week,” union officials said.
“Airport service workers make holiday travel possible by keeping airports safe, clean, and running,” the union said. “Despite their critical role in the profits that major corporations enjoy, many airport service workers must work two to three jobs to make ends meet.”
ABM said it would take steps to minimize disruptions from any demonstrations.
“At ABM, we appreciate the hard work our team members put in every day to support our clients and help keep spaces clean and people healthy,” the company said in a statement last week.
Prospect Airport Services said last week that the company recognizes the seriousness of the potential for a strike during the busy holiday travel season.
UK travel disrupted as Storm Bert fallout continues
- There were more 200 flood warnings and flood alerts in place across England and Wales
There were more 200 flood warnings and flood alerts in place across England and Wales, while trains from London to the southwest were canceled and rail services in central England were severely disrupted.
“Do not attempt to travel on any route today,” Great Western Railway, whose trains connect London to Bristol and Cornwall, said on X.
Amongst those killed during the storm include a dog walker who in North Wales, and a man who died when a tree hit his car in southern England.
Major roads in Northamptonshire and Bristol were closed, while fallen trees on rail lines cut off services between London and Stansted Airport, Britain’s fourth busiest hub.
The disruption comes after Storm Bert hit Britain late on Friday, bringing snow, rain and strong winds.
The Met Office kept a warning for strong winds in place for northern Scotland on Monday and said the storm would clear from that part of the country early on Tuesday.
DHL cargo plane crashes into a house in Lithuania, killing at least 1
- The Lithuanian airport authority identified the aircraft as a “DHL cargo plane
VILNIUS: A DHL cargo plane crashed into a house Monday morning near the Lithuanian capital, killing at least one person.
Lithuanian’s public broadcaster LRT, quoting an emergency official, said two people had been taken to the hospital after the crash, and one was later pronounced dead. LRT said the aircraft smashed into a two-story home near the airport.
The Lithuanian airport authority identified the aircraft as a “DHL cargo plane flying from Leipzig, Germany, to Vilnius Airport.”
It posted on the social platform X that city services including a fire truck were on site.
DHL Group, headquartered in Bonn, Germany, did not immediately return a call for comment.
The DHL aircraft was operated by Swiftair, a Madrid-based contractor. The carrier could not be immediately reached.
The Boeing 737 was 31 years old, which is considered by experts to be an older airframe, though that’s not unusual for cargo flights.
The UN chief and pope call for nations to end the use of antipersonnel land mines
- In remarks sent to a conference in Cambodia to review progress on the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Treaty
- The treaty was signed in 1997 and went into force in 1999, but nearly three dozen countries have not acceded to it
PHNOM PENH: The UN head, Pope Francis and others called Monday for nations to end the production and use of land mines, even as their deployment globally grows.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in a message to delegates at the fifth review of the International Mine Ban Treaty, also known as the Ottawa Convention, that 25 years after it went into force some parties had renewed the use of antipersonnel mines and some are falling behind in their commitments to destroy the weapons.
“I call on states parties to meet their obligations and ensure compliance to the convention, while addressing humanitarian and developmental impacts through financial and technical support,” Guterres said at the opening of the conference in Cambodia.
“I also encourage all states that have not yet acceded to the convention to join the 164 that have done so. A world without anti-personnel mines is not just possible. It is within reach.”
In a statement read on behalf of Pope Francis, his deputy Cardinal Pietro Parolin said that antipersonnel land mines and victim-activated explosive devices continue to be used. Even after many years of hostilities, “these treacherous devices continue to cause terrible suffering to civilians, especially children.”
“Pope Francis urges all states that have not yet done so to accede to the convention, and in the meantime to cease immediately the production and use of land mines,” he said.
The treaty was signed in 1997 and went into force in 1999, but nearly three dozen countries have not acceded to it, including some key current and past producers and users of land mines such as the United States, China, India, Pakistan, South Korea and Russia.
In a report released last week by Landmine Monitor, the international watchdog said land mines were still actively being used in 2023 and 2024 by Russia, Myanmar, Iran and North Korea. It added that non-state armed groups in at least five places — Colombia, India, Myanmar, Pakistan and the Gaza Strip — had used mines as well, and there were claims of their use in more than a half dozen countries in or bordering the Sahel region of Africa.
At least 5,757 people were killed and wounded by land mines and unexploded ordnance last year, primarily civilians of whom a third were children, Landmine Monitor reported.
Landmine Monitor said Russia had been using antipersonnel mines “extensively” in Ukraine, and just a week ago, the US, which has been providing Ukraine with anti-tank mines throughout the war, announced it would start providing Kyiv with antipersonnel mines as well to try and stall Russian progress on the battlefield.
“Antipersonnel mines represent a clear and present danger for civilians,” Guterres said in his statement. “Even after fighting stops, these horrifying and indiscriminate weapons can remain, trapping generations of people in fear.”
He praised Cambodia for its massive demining efforts and for sharing its experience with others and contributing to UN peacekeeping missions.
Cambodia was one of the world’s most mine-affected countries after three decades of war and disorder that ended in 1998, with some 4 million to 6 million mines or unexploded munitions littering the country.
Its efforts to rid the country of mines has been enormous, and Landmine Monitor said Cambodia and Croatia accounted for 75 percent of all land cleared of mines in 2023, with more than 200 square kilometers (80 square miles).
Prime Minister Hun Manet joined the calls for more nations to join the Mine Ban Treaty, and thanked the international community for supporting Cambodia’s mine clearance efforts. He said they have reduced land mine casualties from more than 4,300 in 1996 to fewer than 100 annually over the last decade.
“Cambodia has turned its tragic history into a powerful lesson for the world, advocating against the use of anti-personnel mines and highlighting their long-term consequences,” he said.
Philippine VP Duterte labelled ‘mastermind’ of assassination plot
- Security agencies at the weekend said they would step up their protocols
MANILA: The Philippines justice department on Monday labelled Vice President Sara Duterte the “mastermind” of a plot to assassinate the country’s president, giving her five days to respond to a subpoena.
Duterte is being asked to explain herself in the wake of a blistering weekend press conference where she said she had instructed that President Ferdinand Marcos be killed should an alleged plot to kill her succeed.
“The government is taking action to protect our duly elected president,” Justice Undersecretary Jesse Andres said at a Monday press briefing.
“The premeditated plot to assassinate the president as declared by the self-confessed mastermind will now face legal consequences.”
Speaking to reporters an hour later, Duterte said she planned to respond to the subpoena.
“I will gladly answer the questions they want to ask, but they must answer my questions as well,” she said.
“We’ll just talk there when I get the subpoena.”
In his first public comments on the matter, Marcos earlier in the day vowed to “fight back” in the face of a threat he called “disturbing.”
The Marcos-Duterte alliance that swept to power in 2022 has collapsed spectacularly in the lead-up to next year’s mid-term elections, with both sides trading allegations of drug addiction.
Duterte, who is facing potential impeachment hearings, told reporters early Saturday that she herself was the subject of an assassination plot and had instructed that Marcos be killed should it succeed.
In the expletive-laced press conference, Duterte also singled out first lady Liza Araneta-Marcos and presidential cousin Martin Romualdez as potential targets.
“I said, if I die, don’t stop until you have killed them,” she claimed to have told a security team member regarding the trio.
Hours later, the presidential palace said it was treating the comments as an “active threat.”
“That sort of criminal attempt must not go unchallenged,” Marcos said Monday. “As a democratic country, we need to uphold the law.”
“The vice president is not immune from suit. She can be the subject of any criminal or administrative case,” Andres told reporters, adding the subpoena was in the process of being served.
He added that a manhunt was underway for the “assassin” allegedly engaged by Duterte.
Duterte, daughter of former president Rodrigo Duterte, was Marcos’ running mate in the 2022 presidential election that saw their ticket win in a landslide.
She remains his constitutional successor should he be unable to finish his six-year term.
But she is currently facing an investigation in the House of Representatives, led by Romualdez.
Both Romualdez and Duterte are widely expected to run for president in 2028.
Duterte’s Saturday press briefing came shortly after House officials threatened to transfer her chief of staff Zuleika Lopez — being held for contempt — from the lower chamber’s detention center to a correctional facility.
Lopez has been detained since Wednesday, when she was cited for allegedly interfering in a probe into Duterte’s finances.
Duterte stepped down from her cabinet post of education secretary in June as relations between the two families reached breaking point.
Months earlier, her father had accused Marcos of being a “drug addict,” with the president the next day claiming his predecessor’s health was failing due to long-term use of the powerful opioid fentanyl.
Neither have provided any evidence for their allegations.
In October, Duterte said she felt “used” after teaming with Marcos for the 2022 poll.
