Pakistan imposes emergency rule in ​province governed by Imran Khan’s party

Authorities in Pakistan have announced a state of emergency in the northwestern ‌Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

The state of emergency was invoked on Sunday under two articles of the constitution dealing with security. It effectively suspends the provincial government run by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), the party of jailed former Prime ⁠Minister Imran Khan.

President Asif Ali Zardari said in a social media post he had approved the recommendations made by the cabinet, which had held a meeting under Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif earlier in the day.

A statement issued by Sharif’s office said cabinet members reviewed the situation and took note of the “provincial government’s deliberate disengagement from the fight against terrorism”.

It comes as PTI has been preparing for a march on the capital, Islamabad, to demand the release of Khan, who has been in jail for more than three years but still commands widespread popularity across the country.