ISLAMABAD: A Pakistani religious party on Saturday announced its decision to stage a sit-in at a major traffic junction connecting Rawalpindi and Islamabad to express solidarity with the people of Palestine and pressure the government to meet its demands regarding the ongoing war in Gaza.
Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP), known for its hard-line stance on blasphemy laws, has previously staged sit-ins at the Faizabad Interchange.
The presence of large numbers of protesters in the area significantly disrupts traffic, forcing drivers to take longer, alternative routes between the two cities.
The TLP workers, led by their young leader Saad Rizvi, took out a protest rally from Liaquat Bagh in Rawalpindi to Faizabad before deciding to set up a protest camp at the interchange.
“We will stay here until our demands are met,” Rizvi was quoted as saying in a TLP statement.
“Our first demand is to send food and medical aid to the oppressed Palestinians,” he continued. “Our second demand is for the Pakistani government to announce a boycott of Israeli products on an official level. Our third demand is to declare Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a terrorist.”
The war in Israel began last October and has so far claimed the lives of about 39,000 people, mostly women and children.
While Pakistan’s civil society and political factions have consistently brought out pro-Palestinian rallies, it is not clear what prompted the TLP to initiate the sit-in nearly nine months into the war.
Pakistani religious party stages pro-Palestine sit-in at key Rawalpindi-Islamabad traffic junction
https://arab.news/zs73f
Pakistani religious party stages pro-Palestine sit-in at key Rawalpindi-Islamabad traffic junction
- Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan says it will stay at Faizabad Interchange until the governments meets its demands
- The party wants official boycott of Israeli products along with a proclamation declaring Netanyahu a terrorist
‘Fully stand with Bangladesh’: Pakistan PM backs decision to boycott India match
- Pakistan’s government have not allowed the national cricket team to play its World Cup match against India on Feb. 15
- Pakistan has accused India of influencing ICC decisions, criticized global cricket body for replacing Bangladesh in World Cup
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday backed his government’s decision to bar the national men’s cricket team from playing against India in the upcoming T20 World Cup tournament, reaffirming support for Bangladesh.
Pakistan’s government announced on social media platform X last week that it has allowed its national team to travel to Sri Lanka for the World Cup. However, it said the Green Shirts will not take the field against India on their scheduled match on Feb. 15.
Pakistan’s participation in the tournament was thrown into doubt after Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Mohsin Naqvi criticized the International Cricket Council (ICC) for replacing Bangladesh with Scotland. The decision was taken after Bangladesh said it would not let its team travel to India out of security concerns.
During a meeting of the federal cabinet, Sharif highlighted that Pakistan has said that politics should be kept away from sports.
“We have taken this stand after careful consideration and in this regard, we should stand fully with Bangladesh,” Sharif said in televised remarks.
“And I believe this is a very reasonable decision.”
Pakistan has blamed India for influencing the ICC’s decisions. The global cricket governing body is currently led by Jay Shah, the head of the Board of Control for Cricket in India. Shah is the son of Indian Home Minister Amit Shah.
Pakistan’s boycott announcement has triggered media frenzy worldwide, with several Indian cricket experts and analysts criticizing Islamabad for the decision. An India-Pakistan cricket contest is by far the most lucrative and eagerly watched match of any ICC tournament.
The ICC has ensured that the two rivals and Asian cricket giants are always in the same group of any ICC event since 2012 to capitalize on the high-stakes game.
The two teams have played each other at neutral venues over the past several years, as bilateral cricket remains suspended between them since 2013 due to political tensions.
Those tensions have persisted since the two nuclear-armed nations engaged in the worst fighting between them since 1999 in May 2025, after India blamed Pakistan for an attack in Indian-administered Kashmir that killed tourists.
Pakistan denied India’s allegations that it was involved in the attack, calling for a credible probe into the incident.
