The Pakistan government has threatened to shoot upon marching supporters of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan, as thousands defied a lockdown order to enter the capital Islamabad.
The death toll from the intensifying violence has increased to six, including a police officer, during the protest march on parliament for a sit-in demonstration to demand the release of Mr Khan.
At least four members of the paramilitary Rangers unit, as well as a civilian, were killed when a vehicle rammed into them on a street known as Srinagar Highway in Islamabad.
Prime minister Shehbaz Sharif denounced the fatal attacks on Tuesday, saying an “anarchist group” was deliberately targeting law enforcement personnel, blaming the supporters of Mr Khan’s party. Pakistan cannot “afford any form of chaos or bloodshed”, he said.
Mr Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) denied that protesters were involved and said many of them instead helped the Rangers.
It added that “paramilitary Rangers shot live ammunition” at its protesters in Islamabad, leading to the death of two people and injuries to four others.
“Participants claim they saw at least six people being shot, two of whom died on the spot and four were taken to hospital,” the party said on X.
The Associated Press said dozens of supporters of Mr Khan beat their videographer covering the protest and took his camera. He sustained head injuries and was being treated in a hospital.
The government has imposed a strict lockdown of the capital for the last three days to block the protesters from reaching the capital with all major highways and roads blocked by shipping containers, concrete barricades and security personnel with mobile data suspended in some areas.
Pictures from the scene showed a huge wall of shipping containers erected to block the protesters from entering the capital. Columns of security personnel in riot gear stood guard alongside main roads inside the capital, bracing for a large turnout.
Videos also showed convoys of buses, cars and trucks carrying Mr Khan’s supporters, who chanted slogans and played music, passing through the blockades with containers lying strewn on the ground.
Supporters of Mr Khan broke through the ring of defence and clashed with police firing tear gas a few kilometres away from the centre of the capital, which houses key government buildings as well as the Supreme Court.
Mr Khan’s wife Bushra Bibi and a key aide, Ali Amin Gandapur, who is the chief minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, have been leading the latest demonstration that arrived on the outskirts of Islamabad on Monday night.
Mr Khan’s supporters have been marching to reach the D Chowk, a key intersection in central Islamabad where the protesters say they plan to hold a peaceful sit-in protest.
In a press conference after midnight, interior minister Mohsin Naqvi threatened protesters that police would respond with live fire if protesters fired weapons at them after he announced the death of a law enforcement member.
"If they again fire bullets, the bullet will be responded with a bullet," he said.
The Ministry of Interior announced the deployment of the Pakistani Army in Islamabad, involving Article 245 of the constitution, which authorises the use of forces in the situation of internal security issues, riots, or natural disasters, reported Geo TV.
Usman Anwar, chief of police in Punjab province, said at least 119 others were injured, and 22 police vehicles were torched in clashes just outside Islamabad and elsewhere in the Punjab province.
Two officers were in critical condition, he said.
Mr Khan has been imprisoned for over a year, facing more than 150 criminal cases. Despite this, he remains widely popular, with his political party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, claiming the charges are politically driven.
Authorities say only courts can order the release of Mr Khan, who was ousted in 2022 through a no-confidence vote in parliament. He has been imprisoned since his first conviction in a graft case, in August 2023, and has been sentenced in several cases.
Police have arrested more than 4,000 Khan supporters, including activists, since Friday.
Separately, police registered a case against Mr Khan, his wife, and hundreds of senior PTI leaders over violent protests on charges including the anti-terrorism law.
