PESHAWAR: Jailed former prime minister Imran Khan’s party on Sunday held a rally in Pakistan’s northwest to protest alleged killings of a dozen of its supporters during last month’s protest in Islamabad, but made no announcement regarding a civil disobedience movement Khan had hinted at this month.
Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party on Nov. 24 led thousands of supporters to Islamabad, seeking to pressure the government to release the ex-premier from jail and order an audit of Feb. 8 national election results. The protests resulted in clashes that Pakistan’s government says killed four law enforcers and injured hundreds of others.
The PTI says at least 12 of its supporters were killed and another 37 sustained gunshot injuries due to firing by law enforcers near Islamabad’s Jinnah Avenue on Nov. 26, while 139 of its supporters were still “missing.” Pakistani authorities have denied the deaths, saying security personnel had not been carrying live ammunition during the protest.
On Sunday, the party held a ‘martyrs’ day’ gathering in the northwestern Pakistani city of Peshawar, at which the attendees offered prayers for the ones who allegedly died during the Islamabad protest.
“The reason [to hold the gathering] was to offer prayers for those who were killed on [Islamabad’s] D-Chowk on November 26,” Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Excise and Taxation Minister Khaliq-ur-Rehman told Arab News.
“We had a peaceful protest.”
Speaking to international media journalists on Sunday afternoon, KP Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur said they were demanding the release of Khan and challenging the results of Feb. 8 polls, criticizing authorities for allegedly shooting unarmed protesters in Islamabad.
“Is this the state’s job to fire at unarmed people,” he questioned. “Is this the state’s job that it won’t allow a party hold a protest?“
Last week, the PTI filed a petition in an Islamabad court against Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi and other officials over “firing” on its supporters during the Islamabad protest. The government has accused the PTI of waging a “propaganda” regarding the Islamabad protest, following statements by several PTI members that gave varied accounts of casualties.
The PTI has staged several protests this year to demand the release of Khan and to challenge results of the Feb. 8 national election, which it says were manipulated to favor its opponents. The Pakistani government and election authorities deny this.
Last month’s protests were by far the largest to grip the capital since the poll, while Khan, who remains a popular figure in Pakistan despite being in prison and facing several court cases, on Dec. 6 threatened to launch a civil disobedience movement.
Asked about the movement, Ali Muhammad Khan, a PTI lawmaker, said Khan had formed a committee to hold talks with authorities on their demands for the release all political prisoners and for setting up judicial commissions to investigate the Nov. 24 protest and violence on May 9, 2023, which killed eight people.
“If anything comes out of the negotiations, well and good, otherwise, Khan will announce the next move,” Ali told Arab News at the Peshawar public gathering. “Whatever Khan orders, we will follow.”
Shandana Gulzar, another PTI lawmaker, said they were awaiting detailed instructions from the party founder about the movement.
“Whatever order Khan gives from the prison... we are ready,” she added.
Thousands gather in Peshawar to protest alleged killings at last month’s pro-Imran Khan protests
https://arab.news/wkqea
Thousands gather in Peshawar to protest alleged killings at last month’s pro-Imran Khan protests
- The party remains short of announcing the start of a civil disobedience movement as was anticipated by many
- A Khan aide says they are awaiting outcome of talks with authorities and will follow whatever the ex-PM says
Bangladesh flag carrier to launch Dhaka–Karachi flights this month after over 13 years
- Inaugural flight scheduled to depart from Dhaka to Karachi on Jan, 29, says Biman Bangladesh Airlines spokesperson
- Airline will operate two weekly flights from the Bangladeshi capital to Pakistan’s commercial hub on Thursdays and Saturdays
ISLAMABAD: Bangladesh’s flag carrier Biman Bangladesh Airlines has announced it will launch direct passenger flights between the cities of Dhaka and Karachi after over 13 years later this month, the airline said on Thursday, as both nations improve historically bitter ties.
Biman will operate two weekly flights to Karachi, Pakistan’s largest city by population and its commercial hub, on Thursdays and Saturdays, the airline’s spokesperson Boshra Islam told Arab News.
“Biman is launching its Karachi operations on Thursday, Jan. 29, 2026,” she said, adding that the inaugural flight is scheduled to depart from Dhaka at 8:00 p.m. local time and arrive in Karachi at 11:00 p.m. Pakistan time.
Pakistan has granted Biman initial permission to operate the route for three months until Mar. 26, according to a spokesperson for the Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority. The approval would be extended later, the official said.
The restoration of the airline’s flights to Pakistan marks a significant step in restoring direct air connectivity between the two South Asian nations.
Pakistan and Bangladesh were part of the same country until 1971, when the latter split from the former after a bloody civil war and became the independent state of Bangladesh.
Ties between both have improved significantly since 2024, after the fall of former Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina’s government due to a student-led uprising. Hasina was widely viewed in Pakistan as being close to India and openly critical of Islamabad.
The resumption of passenger flights comes as aviation and trade links between the two countries begin to recover after decades of limited engagement.
In November last year, state-owned Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) said it had signed a cargo agreement with Biman Bangladesh Airlines aimed at streamlining air freight operations and boosting bilateral trade.
A PIA spokesperson said the airlines had entered into a Cargo Interline Special Agreement as part of PIA’s strategy to expand its cargo business and offer more competitive services to customers.
Pakistan has stepped up efforts to rebuild relations with Bangladesh as ties between Dhaka and New Delhi remain strained over India’s decision to grant asylum to Hasina after she fled the country.
In February last year, a cargo vessel sailed directly from Pakistan to Bangladesh for the first time in decades and successfully unloaded its containers, port officials said.
The two countries signed six agreements in August 2025 covering areas such as visa exemptions for diplomatic and official passport holders, trade cooperation, media collaboration and cultural exchanges, officials said.
