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Imran Khan’s party denies internal rifts as new protest campaign begins

Imran Khan’s party denies internal rifts as new protest campaign begins
upporters of the former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan's party, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), carry a cutout of him, as they gather, to protest what they call a black day and a stolen mandate in last year's general election, during a rally in Swabi, Pakistan February 8, 2025. (Reuters/File)
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Updated 15 July 2025

Imran Khan’s party denies internal rifts as new protest campaign begins

Imran Khan’s party denies internal rifts as new protest campaign begins
  • Conflicting protest announcements raise questions over PTI strategy and coordination
  • Leaders say jailed ex-PM’s release remains unifying goal despite ‘minor’ disagreements

ISLAMABAD: Leaders of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan have denied reports of internal rifts over the party’s recently launched anti-government protest campaign, saying the outfit remained united in its demand for Khan’s release.

On July 13, PTI announced a 90-day “do-or-die” protest drive against the government, days after 26 of its provincial lawmakers were suspended in Punjab and the Supreme Court rejected its appeal to reclaim reserved parliamentary seats for women and minorities.

The new protest campaign was launched by Ali Amin Gandapur, the chief minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and a close Khan ally, but appeared to contradict an earlier call for a nationwide protest, posted on Khan’s official X account, set to culminate on August 5, marking the second anniversary of his imprisonment on corruption charges.

More questions emerged as senior PTI leader and Punjab Chief Organizer Aliya Hamza Malik publicly voiced concerns on X about a lack of clarity around the campaign. Malik questioned the origin of the 90-day plan and asked for details on the party’s strategy to secure Khan’s release. Khan has been in jail for nearly two years on multiple charges that he and his party say are politically motivated.

Arab News reached out to Malik for comment but received no response. However, PTI’s central spokesperson dismissed suggestions of internal divisions.

“There is no rift within the party as a whole, everyone is united on the agenda of ensuring Khan’s release, and the PTI is a large party where minor differences of opinion are natural and are part of a political culture,” PTI Central Information Secretary Sheikh Waqas Akram told Arab News. “A single statement can easily be blown out of proportion in this age of social media, but the reality is quite different.

“The party remains united under Khan’s leadership and is focused on a single objective, working for his release.”

Khan was ousted from the PM’s office in a no-confidence vote in April 2022 and jailed in August 2023. Since then, the PTI has repeatedly mobilized street protests, including a large march to Islamabad in November 2024, to demand his release and challenge the legitimacy of the February 2024 general election. The government accuses the PTI of using the protests to incite instability and disrupt efforts at economic recovery.

Asked about the structure of the current protest drive, Akram said the campaign had already begun, with each provincial chapter tasked with planning its own activities.

“All provincial chapters will finalize their protest plans within this week, and the goal is to build momentum leading up to August 5,” he said, declining further comment on the plans.

Earlier this month, Khan’s sister said his sons, Sulaiman and Kasim, who live in the UK, would join the campaign in Pakistan after returning from the United States. She said they would also raise awareness internationally, including in the US, about alleged human rights violations against Khan and PTI members. 

Party leaders declined to provide updates on Sulaiman and Kasim’s plans. 

“MINOR DIFFERENCES”

In the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province where the PTI holds power, party leaders also denied any discord.

CM Gandapur’s announcement of the 90-day campaign was made “in coordination with the top leadership and in line with Khan’s directions,” said Malik Adeel Iqbal, PTI’s information secretary in the province.

“There are no differences within the party,” he told Arab News. “We are focused on finalizing our protest plans in KP, while Punjab will make its own plans. If anyone has any concerns, they should raise them with the central leadership or Khan, rather than making them public.”

Ali Imtiaz Warraich, PTI’s parliamentary leader in the Punjab Assembly, said “minor differences” stemmed from communication challenges due to limited access to Khan in jail.

“As it is difficult to contact Imran Khan and receive directions due to obstacles in leadership meetings with him, the emergence of minor differences is natural,” he said. “But there is no rift between the KP and Punjab chapters or their leadership.”

Warraich said the party’s unity was visible last week when a large number of PTI lawmakers from Punjab joined CM Gandapur at a meeting in Lahore when the 90-day protest plan was announced. 

“We will organize our own protest plans in the province as per the directions of local and central leadership,” he said.

Asked whether the Punjab government would permit the protest campaign, provincial Information Minister Azma Bukhari said peaceful protest was a democratic right but accused the PTI of abusing that right in the past.

“PTI has a history of violence and anarchy,” she told reporters. “No political party is allowed to attack with weapons as Pakistan is our red line.”

“Politics should be kept above personal ego and self-interest and political issues resolved through political means,” Bukhari added.

Hundreds of PTI supporters were arrested after riots allegedly incited by the party against the military on May 9, 2023. The government also says four soldiers were killed in November protests last year. PTI denies the charges. 


Sindh on high alert, 1.6 million at risk as floodwaters from Punjab move south

Sindh on high alert, 1.6 million at risk as floodwaters from Punjab move south
Updated 6 sec ago

Sindh on high alert, 1.6 million at risk as floodwaters from Punjab move south

Sindh on high alert, 1.6 million at risk as floodwaters from Punjab move south
  • NDMA warns flood waves of up to 1.2 million cusecs could pass through barrages in Punjab, Sindh in coming days
  • Sindh sets up emergency cell, deploys 192 rescue boats and over 300 livestock camps ahead of expected deluge

KARACHI: Sindh Information Minister Sharjeel Memon on Saturday said the provincial government was “fully mobilized” to deal with the impact of floods in southern Pakistan, where nearly 1.6 million people and over 1,600 villages are at risk.

The deluge, fueled by record monsoon rains and excess water released from upstream India, has created crisis conditions in the country’s most populous Punjab province since Monday, where the trans-boundary Chenab, Ravi and Sutlej rivers have submerged about 2,300 villages and killed at least 30 people.

The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) cautioned a day earlier that rising river waters were likely to cause extreme flooding in downstream Sindh, with flood waves of 900,000 to 1.2 million cusecs expected to flow through barrages in Punjab and Sindh in the coming days.

Addressing a news conference in Karachi, Memon said floodwaters were expected to enter the province “on the night of September 2 or 3.”

“A provincial Rain and Flood Emergency Monitoring Cell has been set up to monitor the flood situation, which will remain operational round the clock,” he said.

“At present, 192 rescue boats and mobile health units have been deployed,” he continued. “As many as 1.65 million people, 1,651 villages and 167 union councils could potentially be affected, with an estimated 273,000 families at risk.”

The provincial minister said residents of vulnerable areas were being shifted to safer locations, highlighting that most people have voluntarily evacuated from the riverine areas.

“Three hundred camps have also been set up for livestock,” he added. “Continuous monitoring of water levels is underway.”

Memon noted there was no shortage of funds for flood relief activities, adding that the Punjab government was also providing kits in this regard.

Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah convened an emergency meeting on Friday after flood forecasts, instructing all relevant departments to stay vigilant.

“In case of a major flood wave, not a single life, human or animal, should be lost,” he told officials, directing the Sindh Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) to deploy rescue boats, establish over 500 relief camps, and coordinate with the Pakistan Navy, which has 26 boats on standby.

Around 830 people have been killed and 1,121 injured during the monsoon season since June 26, according to official statistics.

Pakistani officials have warned the flood threat could intensify in the coming days, with the current spell expected to last until at least Sept. 10 and potentially rival the 2022 floods, which killed more than 1,700 people and caused over $30 billion in damage.


Pakistani politician to sail with global flotilla seeking to break Gaza blockade

Pakistani politician to sail with global flotilla seeking to break Gaza blockade
Updated 58 min 19 sec ago

Pakistani politician to sail with global flotilla seeking to break Gaza blockade

Pakistani politician to sail with global flotilla seeking to break Gaza blockade
  • Civilian fleet of over 100 ships to launch largest mission yet on Sept. 4
  • Ex-senator Mushtaq Ahmad Khan says other Pakistani delegates awaiting visas

KARACHI: A former Pakistani senator is set to join Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg and Portuguese lawmaker Mariana Mortágua on a multinational flotilla that will set sail next week in an attempt to break Israel’s blockade of Gaza and deliver humanitarian aid.

The mission comes as Palestinians in Gaza continue to suffer from nearly two years of Israel’s war that has killed more than 62,000 people, including children, doctors, health workers and journalists, according to Gaza health authorities and the United Nations. The UN has warned of crimes against humanity and reported “catastrophic levels of forced starvation” in the territory, with more than two million people at risk of famine.

The fleet of over 100 vessels, which will converge in the Mediterranean, is bringing together four regional alliances: Sumud Nusantara from Asia, Sumud Maghrib from Africa, the Global March to Gaza from the Middle East, and the Freedom Flotilla Coalition from Europe.

Mushtaq Ahmad Khan, affiliated with the Jamaat-e-Islami religious party, said he would be representing Pakistan on the Sumud flotilla, which organizers describe as the largest civilian maritime mission ever assembled for Gaza.

“This mission is entirely peaceful, non-violent, and rooted in humanitarian solidarity,” Khan told Arab News over the phone from Tunisia. “The aim is to break the blockade, establish a humanitarian corridor and stop ongoing genocide.”

Organizers have said the mission is the largest non-state humanitarian fleet in history, coordinated by grassroots groups rather than governments. In a statement, the Global Sumud Flotilla said its “allegiance is to justice, freedom, and the sanctity of human life.”

Training for the voyage will be held in Tunisia from September 1–3, after which Khan and other participants are due to set sail on September 4. The cargo will consist of food, water and medicine.

“While the quantity may be symbolic, the true aim is to break the blockade and awaken the global conscience,” Khan said, adding that the flotilla’s position was “fully legal” as it would travel through international waters.

“Our destination is Gaza’s territorial waters. We will have no engagement or interaction with Israel and from a legal standpoint, our position is sound.”

The Pakistani delegation was flagged off earlier this week at a ceremony in Kuala Lumpur attended by Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim. Khan said he is currently the only Pakistani participant, as other members are still awaiting visas.

The flotilla builds on more than a decade of similar attempts to challenge Israel’s maritime blockade. In June this year, Thunberg sailed from Sicily with humanitarian supplies on another Freedom Flotilla vessel, the Madleen, which was intercepted and seized by Israeli forces in international waters.

Khan said he and other participants were prepared for the risks, recalling blockades and attacks on past flotillas, including the deadly 2010 raid on the Turkish ship Mavi Marmara that left 10 activists dead.

“There are three possible outcomes,” he said. “We either reach Gaza successfully, we are intercepted and deported, or we are attacked. We are risking our lives deliberately, not for fame, but for justice.”


‘Precarious’ Punjab as three major rivers all hit ‘super flood’ levels for first time

‘Precarious’ Punjab as three major rivers all hit ‘super flood’ levels for first time
Updated 7 min 36 sec ago

‘Precarious’ Punjab as three major rivers all hit ‘super flood’ levels for first time

‘Precarious’ Punjab as three major rivers all hit ‘super flood’ levels for first time
  • Convergence of Chenab, Ravi and Sutlej has flooded Pakistan’s breadbasket province
  • Forecasts warn of exceptionally high river levels at multiple headworks, more rains 

LAHORE: Pakistan’s Punjab province is facing an unprecedented crisis, with all three of its major rivers — the Chenab, Ravi and Sutlej — simultaneously in “super flood” for the first time in recorded history, a top disaster agency official said on Saturday.

The rare convergence of swollen rivers has inundated swathes of the country’s breadbasket province, fed by record monsoon rains and water releases from upstream India. Flood Forecasting Division data shows exceptionally high levels at multiple headworks, while the Pakistan Meteorological Department has warned of further rains in the upper catchments in early September, threatening to intensify the deluge.

“Currently, the situation is very precarious … we have received high flows in all three major rivers,” Punjab PDMA Director-General Irfan Ali Kathia told Arab News in an interview. “Never in the history of Pakistan and Punjab have three major rivers been in super flood at the same time.”

Kathia said flows in the Sutlej on Friday were the highest since 1955, while the Ravi had not carried such volumes since 1988. He described the crisis as “unprecedented,” with floodwaters still surging through central Punjab.

The Flood Forecasting Division (FFD) said exceptionally high flood levels would persist in the Sutlej at Ganda Singh Wala, while the Chenab at Trimmu was expected to reach the same threshold within 24 hours. The Ravi at Balloki was also in dangerous flood, with further surges forecast. The FFD warned that the Panjnad would face very high flood by September 3, and the Indus at Guddu by September 5, as monsoon flows continue downstream.

The Pakistan Meteorological Department has predicted more heavy showers over the upper catchments of the Sutlej, Beas and Ravi rivers on September 2–3, which could raise flood levels even further.

Asked about the financial toll of the. flood emergency, Kathia said it was too early to give precise figures while floodwaters were still surging through central Punjab.

“The survey is about to start and I can tell you something with certainty when the survey is done,” he said. “But now we are facing this scenario, so the challenges are numerous.”

IMPACT

Punjab Relief Commissioner Nabeel Javed said on Saturday more than 1.5 million people had been affected and 2,308 villages submerged. Around 481,000 residents were evacuated, and relief operations continue with 511 camps, 351 medical units and 321 veterinary camps in place.

At least 30 people have died in the recent floods in Punjab, while two more were killed by lightning in Lahore, according to PDMA figures. Nationwide, the monsoon season that began in late June has so far killed more than 830 people, including 191 in Punjab, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said.

The monsoon season, which began in late June and is expected to last until mid-September, has revived fears of a repeat of Pakistan’s catastrophic 2022 floods, which killed more than 1,700 people, displaced millions and caused losses exceeding $30 billion.


Floods in Pakistan’s Punjab kill 30, displace over 1.5 million as rivers swell

Floods in Pakistan’s Punjab kill 30, displace over 1.5 million as rivers swell
Updated 30 August 2025

Floods in Pakistan’s Punjab kill 30, displace over 1.5 million as rivers swell

Floods in Pakistan’s Punjab kill 30, displace over 1.5 million as rivers swell
  • Over 2,300 villages inundated across Punjab, disaster management agency says
  • Floodwaters in Ravi, Chenab, Sutlej at ‘exceptionally high’ levels, relief efforts expand

ISLAMABAD: At least 30 people have been killed and more than 1.5 million affected as high floods in the Chenab, Ravi and Sutlej rivers submerged over 2,300 villages across Pakistan’s breadbasket province of Punjab this week, the provincial disaster management authority (PDMA) said on Saturday.

The deluge, driven by record monsoon rains and water releases from upstream India, has inundated swathes of Pakistan’s most populous province, crippling rescue and relief operations and forcing mass evacuations. Officials warn the flood threat would intensify in the coming days as fresh rains lash northeastern Punjab and flows peak at major headworks.

According to the National Disaster Management Authority’s most recent monsoon toll, more than 830 people have died across Pakistan since June 26.

In Lahore, the PDMA confirmed two lightning-related deaths during the latest thunderstorms, while floods elsewhere in Punjab have left 30 people dead. 

“Due to severe flooding in rivers Ravi, Sutlej and Chenab, 2,308 villages have been affected,” Punjab Relief Commissioner Nabeel Javed said in a statement released by the PDMA. 

“A total of 1.516 million people have been impacted while 481,000 trapped residents were rescued to safer places.”

He said 511 relief camps and 351 medical camps had been set up in flood-hit districts, along with 321 veterinary camps. Around 405,000 animals have also been shifted to higher ground.

“Compensation for citizens’ losses will be ensured under the instructions of the Punjab chief minister,” Javed said, adding that damages to farmers would also be assessed.

The NDMA said it had dispatched emergency rations to Sialkot and Narowal, some of the worst-affected districts, at the request of Punjab authorities. 

“NDMA has provided 500 ration bags each for flood-hit areas of Sialkot and Narowal,” the agency said. “A convoy of eight trucks has been sent carrying relief goods … while more consignments are planned for Wazirabad, Hafizabad, Chiniot and Jhang in the coming days.”

RISING WATERS

Flood Forecasting Division (FFD) data on Saturday showed exceptionally high flood levels at Ganda Singh Wala on the Sutlej and at Balloki on the Ravi, with the Chenab at Trimmu projected to rise to similar levels within 24 hours and Panjnad expected to reach very high flood on September 3. The Indus at Guddu was also forecast to swell dangerously by September 5.

“Exceptionally high flood level will continue in river Sutlej at Ganda Singh Wala,” the FFD bulletin warned, adding that the Chenab at Trimmu was on track to reach the same threshold within a day.

DG PDMA Irfan Ali Kathia told reporters in Lahore 303,000 cusecs of water were flowing at Ganda Singh, where the army and local administration had evacuated 20 villages overnight.

He added that more than 175,000 cusecs were flowing at Head Marala on the Chenab, while dangerous levels were expected at Head Islam in the next 24 hours.

Punjab’s flooding crisis comes amid what the Met Office described as the ninth spell of monsoon rains, expected to continue until September 2. Heavy showers were recorded in Mandi Bahauddin (81 mm), Hafizabad (63 mm), Jhelum (50 mm), Sialkot (47 mm), and other districts over the past 24 hours.

The PDMA also reported that India’s Bhakra Dam is currently 84 percent full, Pong 94 percent, and Thein 92 percent, raising concerns of further cross-boundary water surges. 

Pakistan has repeatedly accused India of releasing excess flows into downstream rivers during monsoon peaks, intensifying flood risks in Punjab’s agricultural belt.


War then water: Pakistan’s border villagers face back-to-back evacuations

War then water: Pakistan’s border villagers face back-to-back evacuations
Updated 30 August 2025

War then water: Pakistan’s border villagers face back-to-back evacuations

War then water: Pakistan’s border villagers face back-to-back evacuations
  • The back-to-back displacements have underscored the vulnerability of communities straddling Pakistan’s volatile eastern border
  • Officials warn the crisis could worsen as climate change intensifies monsoons, cross-border river disputes strain disaster planning

KASUR: When floodwaters from across the Indian border surged into her village in eastern Pakistan this month, Shama knew what to do: gather her four children and prepare to leave. It was the second time this year she had to flee, after abandoning her home during cross-border fighting between India and Pakistan in May.

“How many times do we need to evacuate now?” the 30-year-old mother said, her husband away ferrying their 10 cows to higher ground on a boat. “We lost out on so much during the war like school days for the children, and now the water is forcing us out again. Trouble is trouble.”

Shama’s ordeal is echoed across flood-hit Kasur, where families say they are exhausted by repeated displacements within months, first from the fighting, now from nature.

“The floods started earlier this month and only got worse,” said 27-year-old mother Bibi Zubaida, who lives with seven relatives in a three-bedroom house opposite a mosque that now broadcasts evacuation calls.

From the mosque loudspeakers, usually reserved for the call to prayer, came a different message: boats were ready for anyone who wanted to leave.

“When you live here, you choose to live with the threat of war and the threat of floods. Where does one go?” Zubaida said.

Kasur lies just a few kilometers from the Indian border. From their rooftops and rescue boats, residents said they could see Indian checkposts across the horizon, a reminder of how closely their fate is tied to decisions made on the other side. The nations share rivers that were regulated for more than six decades under the Indus Waters Treaty. That agreement was suspended by India earlier this year, following the shooting of 26 people by militants that New Delhi said were backed by Islamabad, which Pakistan denies.

That attack triggered brief but intense cross-border battles between the nuclear-armed neighbors, driving villagers like Shama from their homes. Then came the monsoon, and the rivers turned to flood.

On narrow wooden boats, families balanced motorcycles, belongings, and bleating goats alongside their children, as rescue workers steered them through fields now turned into rivers.

Rescue worker Muhammad Arsalan said many villagers hesitated to evacuate.

“People don’t always want to leave because they’re scared of thieves stealing what they’re leaving behind. They’re reluctant because they’ve done it so many times already,” said Arsalan, who has ferried more than 1,500 people to safety by boat in recent days.

“They love their goats and sheep, and sometimes refuse to leave without them,” he added, pausing to clear leaves stuck in the motor before restarting another run.

The Punjab provincial disaster management authority said flows in the Sutlej River at Ganda Singh Wala were the highest in decades, after a breach at an Indian barrage. At least 28 deaths have been reported so far, with water pushing further south through Punjab and threatening new areas.

In India, cloud bursts in Ramban and Mahore regions of Jammu and Kashmir killed 10 people. Pakistani officials said the crisis was worsened by India’s decision to suspend the Indus Waters Treaty, halting the decades-old exchange of river data. Islamabad also accused India of releasing large volumes of water without adequate warning.

“If the treaty was in operation, we could have managed the impact better,” Pakistan’s Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal told Reuters on Friday.

India has denied deliberately flooding Pakistan. It has blamed incessant monsoon rains and said it issued multiple flood alerts. Two gates of the Madhopur barrage on the Ravi River were damaged by surging water, Indian officials said.

Farmers say the deluge has wrecked their livelihoods. “Thirteen of my 15 acres (6 hectares) are gone,” said Muhammad Amjad, a rice and vegetable grower. “Women and children are mainly evacuated. Men stay behind to guard what’s left.”

The back-to-back displacements have underscored the vulnerability of communities straddling Pakistan’s volatile eastern border.

Officials warn the crisis could worsen as climate change intensifies monsoons and cross-border river disputes strain disaster planning.

“I’ve seen many floods, but they are coming too often now,” said Nawabuddin, a 74-year-old landowner, recalling the most memorable floods he witnessed in his lifetime — 1988, 2023 and now this one. “We don’t want war, we don’t want excess water. We just want to live,” said Zubaida, whose newly renovated home and farmland now lie underwater.