PESHAWAR: Three people were killed and 12 injured after police in Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province on Saturday shot at former lawmaker Mohsin Dawar and his supporters who were protesting alleged election irregularities in their constituency during the Feb. 8 polls, confirmed a senior administration official.
Shafiullah Wazir said Dawar, the founding leader of the National Democratic Movement who contested the elections from NA-40, attempted to force his way into the office of the returning officer in North Waziristan with his supporters before the incident.
He informed that a list maintained by the Miran Shah Hospital in the area named 15 people who were brought in an injured state.
“Three of them, Abdul Wahab, Sher Ayub and Wasif Ullah, were later pronounced dead,” Wazir said.
He added that police fired gunshots into the air to deter the protesters from entering the RO office, adding that Dawar was also injured but was in stable condition.
Pakistan’s national elections on Feb. 8 were marred by violence, with 16 people killed and another 54 injured across the country.
In KP, at least three people were killed and 12 others injured during a protest by supporters of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan’s party against National Assembly election results in the Shangla district.
Ismail Mehsud, a senior NDM leader, said Dawar and his supporters were only attempting to meet the election official, but the police stopped them.
“NDM supporters, including Dawar, suffered injuries [in the police shooting],” he said. “Dawar was rushed to a local hospital for treatment, where he was in stable condition.”
Mehsud said his party’s supporters were protesting “controversial results” in NA-40 North Waziristan constituency.
“Until last evening, Dawar was leading by a margin of 3,000 votes, but this morning, our rival candidate Misbah Uddin from JUI [Jamiat-e-Ulama-e-Islam] was declared the winner,” he said. “The results were changed overnight, which was our main concern.”
According to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) data, Dawar secured 32,768 votes while his rival candidate bagged 42,994 in Thursday’s national elections.
Three killed, ex-MNA among 12 injured in police shooting at Pakistan rigging protests
https://arab.news/pjy8d
Three killed, ex-MNA among 12 injured in police shooting at Pakistan rigging protests
- The incident took place when Mohsin Dawar and his supporters were protesting election results for NA-40 in North Waziristan
- A senior official says police resorted to ‘aerial firing’ when the protesters tried to force their way into the office of returning officer
Peace can only prevail if Afghanistan renounces support for ‘terrorism’— Pakistan defense chief
- Pakistan’s chief of defense forces visits South Waziristan district bordering Afghanistan
- Pakistan says has killed 481 Afghan Taliban operatives since clashes began last Thursday
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Chief of Defense Forces Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir said on Wednesday that peace with Afghanistan can only prevail if Kabul renounces support for “terrorism” and “terrorist” organizations, the military’s media wing said as the two countries remain locked in conflict.
Fighting between the two neighbors, the worst in decades, broke out last Thursday night after Afghan forces attacked Pakistan’s military installations along their shared border. Afghanistan said its attacks were in response to earlier airstrikes by Pakistan against alleged militant hideouts in its country.
Pakistan accuses Afghanistan of sheltering militant outfits such as the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) on its soil who have launched attacks against Pakistani civilians and security forces in recent years. Kabul denies the allegations.
Munir visited Wana town in Pakistan’s South Waziristan district to review the security situation and troops’ operational preparedness at the Afghan border, the Pakistani military’s media wing said in a statement.
“The Field Marshal reiterated that peace could only prevail between both sides if the Afghan Taliban renounced their support for terrorism and terrorist organizations,” the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said.
The military chief said the use of Afghan soil by militant outfits to launch attacks against Pakistan was unacceptable, vowing that “all necessary measures” would be taken to neutralize cross-border threats.
During the visit, Munir was briefed by military commanders about ongoing intelligence-based operations and measures being taken by the military to manage the border with Afghanistan.
He was also briefed about “Operation Ghazab Lil Haq” or “Wrath for the Truth,” the name Pakistan has given to its military operation against Afghan forces, the ISPR said.
The Pakistani military chief spoke to troops deployed in the area, praising their vigilance, professional conduct and high morale, the ISPR said.
Pakistan’s Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said on Wednesday that the military has killed 481 Taliban operatives, injured more than 690 and destroyed 226 Afghan checkposts since clashes began.
Arab News has been unable to verify claims by both sides about the damages they claim to have inflicted on each other.
Afghanistan has signaled it is open for dialogue but Pakistan rejected the offer, saying it would continue its military operations till its objectives were achieved.
Since the conflict began, diplomatic efforts have intensified with several countries, including global bodies such as the European Union and United Nations, urging restraint and calling for talks.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif that Ankara would help reinstate a ceasefire, the Turkish Presidency said on Tuesday, as other countries that had offered to mediate have since been hit by the conflict in the Gulf.
