ISLAMABAD: Demonstrators belonging to JI and Gaza Bachao Tehreek – Movement to Save Gaza – clashed with police on Sunday as the former tried to enter Islamabad’s red zone to protest government inaction amid the brutal genocide of Gaza’s beleaguered Palestinians.
Former senator Mushtaq Ahmad Khan led the protest demonstration on behalf of JI. The movement to save Gaza was represented by its central leader, Humer Tayyab.
After the protesters gathered, the police closed the gate leading to D-Chowk to prevent them from moving towards the Parliament building.
Mushtaq Ahmad Khan spoke to Federal Police SSP Abdul Aleem and sought permission to proceed towards the red zone.
However, the police refused to grant permission for the protesters to enter the red zone, leading to a confrontation between the protesters and the police.
According to a JI spokesperson, the police baton-charged peaceful protesters, resulting in injuries to some JI workers. As a result, the protesters also threw stones at the police.
The protesters later staged a six-hour sit-in near D-Chowk and broke their street fast. They announced that they would hold a similar sit-in at the same location next Sunday.
Speaking on the occasion, Humera Tayyaba of the Movement to Save Gaza told the protesters that this campaign was launched to put pressure on Israel at the global level.
She said that countries including the United States, the United Kingdom and some countries in the Middle East are supporting this genocide of the people of Gaza at the hands of Israel.
“We protested in seven cities, but the Pakistani government stopped listening to us. It is shameful that we were intimidated and threatened today. Either we play here or we go to jail,” she said.
JI’s Mushtaq Ahmad Khan said that their movement has a specific agenda which is only to save Gaza. He said people in Gaza are breaking fasts on the ruins of their demolished homes, but this “pro-Israel” government is trying to stop the protesters.
“We’re ready to go to jail. In any case, we will go to D-Chowka. The police should be recalled immediately,” he said.
The JI leader claimed that the protest was in line with resolutions passed in parliament against Israeli atrocities in Gaza. He said that the government will first pass the resolution, but when people come to the streets to implement the resolution, they will resort to intimidation.
He criticized prominent leaders of the Muslim world including Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif for their alleged inaction and asked if these leaders were waiting for the entire population of Gaza to die.
He called on the army chief to mobilize the army to protect the Palestinians. He said that Pakistan should immediately play its role in the ceasefire.
“Indict Israel’s crimes at the International Court of Justice, initiate UN Security Council hearings against Israel’s war crimes, and issue a demarche to the US ambassador.
“I am saddened that today the police surrounded us to arrest us. We came here for innocent children, but the government is putting up obstacles. We condemn and will continue to condemn the actions of Israel, America and Europe,” he said. Meanwhile, JI chief Sirajul Haq while talking to the media in Jaranwala said that those who reach the rally by stealing the public mandate will soon be forced back to their homes. Haq said reverse inflation has made life difficult for people.
