At least five people have been killed in Lahore as Pakistani police violently crack down on protesters at a pro-Palestine rally.
The protest, organised by Islamic political group Tehrik-e-Labaik Pakistan (TLP) on Monday, was called ahead of US President Donald Trump’s announcement last week of a ceasefire deal to end the Gaza war.
According to local reports, the police had attempted to negotiate a cancellation of the march prior to Monday’s violence, but those efforts failed.
Local media also reported that TLP had launched its protest from Lahore on Friday with the announcement to march up to the American embassy in Islamabad, and stage a sit-in outside the premises in solidarity of Gaza.
The protesters succeeded in reaching Murdike, about 40km from Lahore on the Grand Trunk Road, where they were stopped by police.
Apparently, all efforts to convince the protestors to end the march ended when police tried to forcefully clear the road and disperse the protesters.
At least five people, including a police officer, were killed and many more injured as police clashed with thousands of demonstrators. Both police and the TLP claim the opposing side opened fire, sparking the worst of the violence.
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Footage shared on social media showed burning vehicles, chaotic scenes, and gunfire could be heard ringing out near by.
The TLP are a conservative religious movement who have faced sanctions from the Pakistani state, and are known to have engaged in violent clashes with the authorities in past protests – including in 2021, when the group demanded the expulsion of the French Ambassador over Charlie Hebdo’s blasphemous cartoon of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him).
The TLP first gained prominence in Pakistan’s 2018 elections, campaigning on the single issue of defending the country’s blasphemy law, which calls for the death penalty for anyone who insults the Prophet Muhammad and the Quran.
Brown-nosing Trump
Lahore’s deadly pro-Palestine protest crackdown comes after Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif fawned over Trump at the Sharm el-Sheikh “peace summit” on Monday where the American president signed and finalised the Gaza “peace deal”.
Sharif lauded the role of Trump, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and other world leaders for “valuably” contributing to peace efforts. Sharif claimed that achieving the ceasefire in the war-torn Gaza has saved “millions of lives” in the Middle East.
He said: “Again, I would like to nominate this great president (Trump) for the Nobel Peace Prize because I genuinely feel he is the most genuine and wonderful candidate for the peace prise because he has not only brought peace to south Asia, saving millions of lives but also is saving millions of lives in the Middle East.”
Sharif continued: “Mr President, I’d like to salute you for your exemplary leadership. I think you are the man this world needs most at this time. The world will always remember you as the man who went out of his way to stop war.”
The speech, which went viral online, sparked outrage and ridicule from many onlookers who considered the lengthy speech deeply pretentious.
One observer Dr Tariq Tramboo wrote on X: “Not shown in this video. After his speech, PM of Pakistan bowed to Trump and kissed his shoes.”
Another, Mehlaqa Samdani, wrote: “Trump, a narcissist who needs constant praise, can always rely on Pakistan’s prime minister Shehbaz to effusively deliver it. Nobody does it better!”
Last week, Trump announced that Israel and Hamas had agreed to the first phase of a plan he laid out September 29 to bring a ceasefire in Gaza, release all Israeli captives in exchange for Palestinian hostages, and a gradual withdrawal of occupying Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip. The first phase of the deal came into force on Friday.
Phase two of the plan calls for the establishment of a new governing mechanism in Gaza without Hamas’ participation, the formation of a multinational force, and the disarmament of Hamas.
