In the early hours of Wednesday, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) announced it was calling off its high-stakes protest sit-in in Islamabad following a day of intense clashes between law enforcement agencies and protesters in the capital’s heavily fortified Red Zone.
The decision came after the PTI leadership made a swift retreat in the face of escalating violence.
By the following morning (November 27), city workers were busy cleaning up debris and removing shipping containers that had blocked key roads across the capital. The Red Zone, which had been the focal point of the protests, was empty of demonstrators, but several protest vehicles remained. Among them was a truck, previously used by Bushra Bibi to lead the protests, which appeared to have been damaged by flames, according to Reuters witnesses.
Why was the protest called of?
“In view of the government’s brutality and the government’s plan to turn the capital into a slaughterhouse for unarmed citizens, [we] announce the suspension of the peaceful protest for the time being,” reads a press release shared on official X account of PTI. It added that future plan of action would be announced “in light of the directions” of its incarcerated founder Imran Khan after the party’s political and core committees discuss the situation with Khan
The statement, issued by the party spokesperson, condemned the alleged “brutality against peaceful protesters in the name of an operation” and appealed to Chief Justice of Pakistan Yahya Afridi to take suo motu notice of the alleged “brutal murder of martyred [party] workers” and order legal action against the prime minister and interior minister as well as Islamabad and Punjab police chiefs.
Imran Khan supporters pushed back
Thousands of PTI supporters had gathered at D-Chowk (Democracy Square), the center of Islamabad, on Tuesday (November 26) after a convoy led by Imran Khan’s wife, Bushra Bibi, broke through multiple lines of security, making its way to the edge of the city’s Red Zone.
According to reports from Geo News and ARY, security forces launched a massive raid in the central district of Islamabad, where lights had been turned off and a barrage of teargas was fired into the crowd. The protest, which had already gathered significant momentum, was almost completely dispersed in the chaos, with many protesters fleeing the scene.
As the situation intensified, PTI leaders, including Bushra Bibi and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur, urged the protesters to retreat. Gandapur was heard telling the crowd to “go home, have dinner, and return tomorrow,” signaling the end of the protest for the night.
The calm followed a night of chaos, signaling a temporary pause in the PTI’s high-pressure campaign, though the possibility of a renewed protest remains on the horizon.
Mobile and data services restored in Islamabad
Meanwhile, after a four-day internet blackout, data services were restored in various parts of Islamabad, including the Red Zone and Bani Gala, as well as in Rawalpindi. PTA Chairman Hafeezur Rehman confirmed the restoration of internet services at 7 a.m. on Wednesday.
Schools and workplaces that remained shut from Monday to Wednesday are expected to open on Thursday (November 28).