Pakistan Imposes Emergency As Imran Khan Supporters March In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

Pakistan's President Asif Ali Zardari has declared a state of emergency in the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, granting the federal government sweeping administrative powers. The move, invoked under Articles 232(1) and 234(1) of the Constitution, comes amid a confrontation between Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's government and Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, which governs the province.

The PTI party has been rallying for several days to pressure the government for Khan's release, with plans to march on the capital Islamabad. According to the Jerusalem Post, Zulfikar Bukhari, a close Khan aide and PTI spokesman, called the decision "ridiculous", warning it would lead to further bloodshed and instability.

The federal cabinet's decision to impose emergency was made citing the provincial government's alleged failure to fight Islamist militancy, with the PM's office saying it was due to the provincial government's "deliberate disengagement from the fight against terrorism". The President's House issued a proclamation stating the measures have taken immediate effect.

Brief written by urgent.news from NDTV, Jerusalem Post, Daily Times, Al Jazeera — 4 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.