Pakistani protesters stay defiant
Print Edition
ANTI-GOVERNMENT protesters stormed Pakistan’s state television building yesterday, forcing the channel briefly off the air as they clashed with police and pushed closer to the prime minister’s residence.
The violence comes as part of the mass demonstrations led by cleric Tahir ul Qadri and opposition politician Imran Khan that demand Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif resign. Over the weekend, clashes between protesters and security forces killed three people and wounded hundreds in running street battles in Pakistan’s capital, Islamabad.
Yesterday, protesters and police clashed in various areas of the city’s Red Zone, a sprawling complex of government buildings and grassy lawns in the center of Islamabad. The protesters, armed with clubs and many wearing gas masks, hurled rocks at police. Five police officers, including a senior Islamabad police chief, and three protesters were taken to hospital, bleeding.
They also stormed into the building of the Pakistani state broadcaster, located in another area of the Red Zone, and forced the television briefly off the air. Inside the state TV building, the protesters moved through the corridors with sticks and clubs, smashing equipment.
The rallies against Sharif constitute the biggest threat to his government after a little more than a year in office. Several rounds of talks between the sides have failed to make headway.
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