Pakistan shuts down internet, cell services ahead of pro-Imran Khan protest

Pakistan suspended mobile and internet services in areas with security concerns on Sunday as supporters of jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan prepared to protest in the capital.

The government and the Interior Ministry published the announcement on social media platform X, which is banned in Pakistan. They did not specify the areas or specify the duration of the suspension.

Internet and mobile services will continue to operate as usual in the rest of the country, the publications said.

Meanwhile, telecommunications company Nayatel has sent emails offering its customers reliable landline phone service as a workaround in areas where cell phone service is suspended.

Khan has been in prison for more than a year and faces more than 150 criminal charges. But he remains popular and his political party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf or PTI, says the cases are politically motivated.

His supporters rely heavily on social media to demand his release and use messaging platforms like WhatsApp to share information, including details of events.

Pakistan has already cordoned off the capital Islamabad with shipping containers and closed major roads and highways linking the city to PTI strongholds in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces.

PTI spokesperson Sheikh Waqas Akram said Khan's wife Bushra Bibi was traveling to Islamabad in a convoy led by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur.

She cannot leave party activists alone, Akram said.

In the eastern city of Lahore, police arrested PTI members as passers-by broke through roadblocks. The mood was more festive in Peshawar, with PTI members dancing, drumming and holding up photos of Khan as the cars left for Islamabad.

The government is imposing bans on social media platforms and targeting VPN services, according to internet advocacy group Netblocks.

On Sunday, the group said live measurements showed that WhatsApp's backends are restricted in Pakistan, affecting media sharing on the app.

The U.S. Embassy issued a security alert to Americans in the capital, encouraging them to avoid large gatherings and warning that even peaceful gatherings can turn violent.

Last month, authorities suspended mobile phone service in Islamabad and Rawalpindi to thwart a pro-Khan rally. The shutdown disrupted communications and affected daily services such as banking, ride-hailing services and food delivery.

The latest crackdown comes on the eve of the visit of Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko.

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi said authorities had cordoned off the city's red zone, which houses key government buildings and is the destination of Khan's supporters.

Anyone who does so will be arrested, Naqvi told a news conference.

He said security measures were in place to protect residents and property, accusing the PTI of hindering people and businesses.

He added that the demonstrators planned to follow the same path as the Belarusian delegation, but that the government had avoided this scenario.

Naqvi denied that mobile phone services had been suspended and said only mobile data was affected.

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