Pakistan bans TLP after deadly clashes
Pakistan outlawed Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan on Thursday after street violence killed five people the previous week. The cabinet vote followed clashes between supporters and security forces at an anti-Israel demonstration before President Donald Trump revealed his Gaza ceasefire proposal. Government officials accused the organization of promoting terrorism and violent behavior in their official statement.
The Sunni Muslim movement emerged in 2011 at memorial services for a guard who murdered a governor over blasphemy accusations. Party leaders captured 2 million ballots in the 2018 elections, making it the nation’s fourth-largest political force. Their protests have addressed topics from the Gaza conflict to European cartoons depicting Prophet Mohammad.
Authorities first prohibited the group in 2021 under Prime Minister Imran Khan after destructive rallies but reversed the decision within six months when organizers pledged nonviolence. The party rejected the current ban as dictatorial and unconstitutional through written declarations. Pakistan maintains death penalties for blasphemy offenses despite criticism that citizens exploit these laws for revenge and mob attacks occur after religious insult claims.
