ISLAMABAD, Pakistan: Following hours of severe clashes between police and the Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) activists, now the protest by the religio-political party has been converted into a sit-in at Faizabad Interchange which connects the Twin Cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi.
The TLP activists were protesting against the publication of blasphemous caricatures in the French Magazine Charlie Hebdo and anti-Islam remarks by the French President Emmanuel Macron, and demanding the Pakistani government to cut its diplomatic ties with France.
The congregation of protestors in Rawalpindi’s Murree Road and aggressive attempts by police to disperse them turned the situation violent, resulting in severe clashes and injuries to both sides.
To curtail the further influx of protesters into Twin Cities, the administration sealed the entry points of Rawalpindi and Islamabad with containers, devised traffic diversion plans, and also shut down the mobile services.
اسلام آباد میں مذہبی جماعت کے احتجاج کے باعث ٹریفک کی روانی متاثر ہے۔ عوام کسی بھی پریشانی سے بچنے کے لیے غیر ضروری سفر سے اجتناب کریں۔
فیض آباد چاروں اطراف سے ٹریفک کے لیے بند ہے۔ اسلام آباد ٹریفک پولیس ٹریفک کی روانی کو جلد بحال کرنے کے لیے کوشاں ہے۔#IslamabadPolice@SSPITP
— Islamabad Police (@ICT_Police) November 16, 2020
The following traffic plan has also been devised by the Islamabad police to ensure the smooth flow of traffic;
Islamabad Traffic Diversion Plan for Faizabad protest from November 16, 2020 till further notification
فیض آباد سے تازہ ترین pic.twitter.com/RzY7oe9RRc
— Syed Talat Hussain (@TalatHussain12) November 16, 2020