ISLAMABAD: Former prime minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party will hold nationwide protests today, Saturday, after one of its lawmakers vowed not to let the National Assembly function until those who had benefitted from last month’s purportedly rigged elections continued to be part of the house.
Pakistan’s Feb. 8 national polls were marred by a countrywide shutdown of cellphone networks and delayed results, leading to widespread speculation of election manipulation.
Several political parties, including the PTI of ex-PM Khan, who remains incarcerated on multiple charges since August, have been protesting the election results, which they say were changed in favor of their opponents.
Pakistan’s caretaker administration and election commission have denied the allegations.
“We don’t accept [the legitimacy] of this assembly,” PTI leader Junaid Akbar said during his speech on the floor of the house. “This assembly will not function until [the people] who have usurped the rights of others [through rigging] are driven out of here.”
“Our voters and supporters have not told us to do lawmaking [in this house],” he continued. “They have not told us to tolerate this [situation] silently. We will not stay silent. Until our leader [Imran Khan] is released from prison, there is no question of anyone sitting in the [lawmaker’s] chair with respect and dignity.”
Akbar said the PTI lawmakers had not come to the National Assembly for reconciliation or negotiation.
“What constitution, democracy and parliament are you referring to [when in this house] more than half of the people are those who lost [the Feb. 8 elections],” he added. “What you have done to the constitution, what you have done to this country, you will be held accountable [for that].”
The PTI leader said no one should be under the illusion that his party would allow the National Assembly to function until its members got their rights.
Raoof Hasan, the spokesperson of Khan’s party, also told local news channel Geo TV that the goal of the countrywide protest today was to restore people’s mandate.
Ex-PM Khan’s party launches Pakistan-wide protests over election ‘rigging’
https://arab.news/gfc4z
Ex-PM Khan’s party launches Pakistan-wide protests over election ‘rigging’
- A PTI lawmaker accuses more than half of the assembly members of sitting in the house despite losing the elections
- He says his party was not there for reconciliation, demands the release of former prime minister Khan from prison
Pakistan condemns Israeli attacks on Lebanon, assures full support for sovereignty
- Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif speaks to Lebanese counterpart Nawaf Salam, says PMO
- Israeli strikes this week in Lebanon have killed over 60 people, injured more than 150
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned Israel’s fresh wave of strikes against Lebanon on Wednesday, assuring full support for the country’s territorial integrity and sovereignty, Sharif’s office said.
Israel carried out a wave of air attacks against Lebanon on Monday after the Iran-backed Hezbollah fired a barrage of missiles and drones at Israel. Hezbollah launched the attack on Haifa in response to the killing of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei during US-Israeli strikes over the weekend.
Israeli strikes on Beirut’s suburbs and southern Lebanon killed at least 52 people and injured 154 on Monday, according to state-run media. On Wednesday, Israel ordered residents of a vast region of southern Lebanon to leave their homes while its military expanded its campaign of air strikes in the country, killing at least 11.
Sharif spoke to Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam via telephone to discuss regional tensions, including the Iran crisis, the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said in a statement.
“During their discussion, the Prime Minister condemned, in the strongest terms, Israel’s aggression against Lebanon,” Sharif’s office said.
The Pakistani premier conveyed his condolences over the loss of lives in Lebanon due to the Israeli attacks.
“While recalling the longstanding brotherly ties between Pakistan and Lebanon, he assured the Lebanese leadership of Pakistan’s full support for Lebanon’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and offered to play a constructive role in peace efforts,” the PMO said.
The two leaders discussed surging tensions in the region, agreeing on the need for urgent de-escalation and restoration of peace, the statement added.
“Prime Minister Nawaf Salam thanked the Prime Minister and the people of Pakistan for their expression of solidarity with Lebanon at this difficult time,” Sharif’s office said.
Pakistan, which does not have diplomatic relations with Israel, has criticized its strikes against Iran and military campaigns in the Middle East.
