Protests have been broken up with violence and opposition politicians from Imran Khan’s party arrested

Pakistani authorities have unleashed a draconian crackdown on dissent, breaking up opposition protests with violence and mass arrests and banning a movement to promote the rights of the ethnic Pashtun community under terrorism laws.

Hundreds of riot police fired teargas and charged with batons as supporters of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), the party of the incarcerated former prime minister Imran Khan, gathered to protest over the weekend in the cities of Islamabad and Lahore.