In Pakistan, the police detained former Prime Minister Imran Khan, after which riots broke out in the country. It is reported informburo.kz with reference to Al Jazeera.
Police used water cannons and tear gas to quell protests that erupted in several Pakistani cities hours after Imran Khan was arrested in a corruption case. At least one person was killed in the city of Quetta.
Protesters set fire to the office of Radio Pakistan and the country’s Air Force base in Mianwali. The building of interdepartmental intelligence was also attacked. The demonstrators attack the police.
It is noted that following the news of Khan’s arrest, the opposition called on people to take to the streets. Thousands of supporters of the former prime minister staged street protests on May 9 in the capital Islamabad, Karachi, Lahore, Peshawar and other cities.
On the streets of Islamabad, hundreds of demonstrators blocked one of the main highways leading to and from the capital.
“As reports of Imran Khan’s arrest spread across the country, protesters took to the streets and detentions took place. Supporters of Imran Khan are very angry, and the situation is escalating by the hour, ”Al Jazeera reports.
Islamabad police said on social media that five police officers were injured and 43 protesters were arrested. In Lahore, the country’s second largest city, protesters gathered outside the former prime minister’s residence and blocked adjacent roads with barricades of burning tires. The police used water cannons to disperse the demonstrators.
In the southern port city of Karachi, supporters of the opposition party gathered outside the local party office, located on the busiest street of Shahra-e-Faisal. Both lanes of the road near the office of the party were blocked, the area was cordoned off by large police detachments.
Law enforcement used tear gas to disperse the protesters as they tried to block the road. A group of demonstrators threw stones and set fire to tires on Burns Road, famous for its restaurants, stopping traffic and forcing shopkeepers to temporarily close establishments.
In the northwestern city of Landi Kotal near the border with Afghanistan, protesters blocked two sections of the Pakistani-Afghan international highway.
Imran Khan is a popular politician and leader of the opposition Justice Movement Party. Previously, several criminal cases were opened against him. In particular, he is accused of allegedly receiving gifts from foreign leaders and earning a total of about 630 thousand dollars from this. In March, following clashes between police and Khan’s supporters, Islamabad police opened a terrorism investigation against the ex-premier.
Source: Rosbalt
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