The French embassy in Pakistan advised all French nationals in Pakistan to temporarily leave the country on the back of violent protests by radical religious group Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP). Pakistan had, on Thursday, formally banned the TLP under the Terrorism Act, accusing it of involvement in terrorism and acting in a manner prejudicial to the peace and security of the country.
The TLP took to streets on Monday to launch violent protests to force the government to expel the French ambassador over blasphemous caricatures published last year. Though no French citizen was reportedly targeted so far, the embassy urged all the French citizens and companies to leave Pakistan, apparently as a precautionary measure.
The TLP had launched the country-wide protest on Monday after the arrest of its chief Saad Hussain Rizvi ahead of April 20 deadline the Islamists had given to the Imran Khan government demanding expulsion of the French ambassador for publication of cartoons of the Prophet. The TLP blocked the roads across the country following the arrest of Saad Rizvi, son of Khadim Hussain Rizvi who died a few months ago. The TLP supporters clashed with the law enforcement agencies in several towns and cities earlier this week, leaving seven persons dead and over 300 policemen injured.
Interestingly, the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf government which is fully backed by the military establishment had signed an agreement with the TLP in November last agreeing to expel the French ambassador. The TLP launched a massive protest in November last year against the cartoons but dispersed after the agreement with the government to expel the ambassador by February. The deal was extended until April 20.
The government had promised to take action on the demands of the TLP by bringing a legislation in the parliament. The TLP shot to fame in 2017 when it held a massive protest for three weeks in the busy Faizabad interchange near Islamabad. The party lifted the lockdown of the city after the then government sacked the law minister.
