The federal government of Pakistan on Monday, the 12th, accused the provincial administration – led by the party of the former imprisoned prime minister Imran Khan – of acting in close collaboration with the Pakistani Taliban, citing this alleged collusion to justify the suspension of the provincial government, which had occurred the day before.
The Information Minister, Attaullah Tarar, said the government had “solid evidence” to back its claims.
He declared that the suspension and the imposition of a state of emergency in the province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, in the northwest of the country, would allow security forces and the new administration to coordinate their counter-terrorism efforts more effectively.
The Justice Minister, Azam Nazeer Tarar, stated that the provincial government was suspended for at least six months, but did not set a timeframe for the end of the state of emergency. The Chief Minister Sohail Afridi, the province’s chief elected official, was detained by the government after being removed from office.
The Information Minister accused Afridi of facilitating the Pakistani Taliban’s actions, a group suspected of being behind the wave of violence seen in recent years.
The Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) is a distinct group, but a close ally of the Afghan Taliban, which returned to power in Afghanistan in 2021. Source: Associated Press.
*Content translated with the aid of artificial intelligence, reviewed and edited by the Editorial Desk of Broadcast, the real-time news system of Grupo Estado*
