Pakistan elections: Vote counting underway in polls hit by violence

At least nine people, including two children, were killed in militant attacks in Pakistan today as the country voted in a general election after suspending mobile phone services and closing some land borders to maintain law and order.

The interior ministry said it took the security steps after at least 26 people were killed in two explosions near electoral candidates’ offices in the southwestern province of Balochistan on Wednesday. Islamic State later claimed responsibility for those attacks.

“As a result of the recent incidents of terrorism in the country precious lives have been lost, security measures are essential to maintain the law and order situation and deal with possible threats,” the ministry said in a post on messaging platform X.

Thousands of troops were deployed on the streets and at polling stations across the country as voting commenced and borders with Iran and Afghanistan were temporarily closed.

Despite the heightened security, five policemen were killed in a bomb blast and firing on a patrol in the Kulachi area of Dera Ismail Khan district in the northwest, authorities said. Another person died in firing on a security forces vehicle in Tank, about 40 km (25 miles) to the north.

In the Nawaz Sharif stronghold of Lahore, there was nonetheless a robust turnout for Imran Khan’s party.In the Ghauri Shahu neighborhood, Kashfa Zain said she left the house at 6:30 a.m. to make sure she was on time to cast her vote for one of Khan’s candidates.

“My kids were impressing on me how important it was to get here early. The kids are making such an effort with this election. They know all about it. They are all voting for PTI,” as Khan’s party is known, she said.Her daughter Ilham, 19, studied the party’s policies and figures on Instagram, including which candidates were using which symbols. “They went through it several times,” Kashfa Zain said.

Sharif’s supporters appeared to express less enthusiasm and determination, even in his own constituency. One voter said he had to vote for the family because they were his neighbors and he saw them almost every day.

“They are good for the economy. They are good for industry,” said photographer Shahrukh Bhatti. “They have good controls on foreign exchange. But people are so demoralized about this vote,” he said, throwing his hands up as a sign of helplessness.“It’s being controlled by outside forces,” he said, a reference to the country’s military, which has ruled Pakistan for more than half of its history and still ultimately decides who comes to power.

Pakistan‘s former prime minister Imran Khan will take his long-drawn legal fight to the higher courts, his party says, after he was found guilty in two different cases just a week before the country’s general election.

Mr Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi, were each awarded jail terms of 14 years on Wednesday for illegally selling gifts worth more than £395,000 from the state treasury, known as the “Toshakhana”, during his premiership. He was also barred from holding public office for 10 years and they were fined approximately £2.2m each.

The former cricket star-turned-politician was also handed another 10-year term on Tuesday after being found guilty of revealing state secrets. He is already serving a three-year sentence for corruption.

Alisha Rahaman Sarkar reports:

The 35-year-old, a former foreign minister and scion of a family that gave the nation two prime ministers, called for new ideas and leadership to calm political and economic instability.

“The implications of the decisions taken today are going to be faced by the youth of Pakistan,” Mr Bhutto Zardari told Reuters in Larkana, his hometown in the southern province of Sind, a family bastion.

Analysts say there may be no clear winner but the powerful generals could play a role. The military has dominated the nuclear-armed country either directly or indirectly in its 76 years of independence but for several years it has maintained it does not interfere in politics.

“The deciding factor is which side the powerful military and its security agencies are on,” said Abbas Nasir, a columnist. “Only a huge turnout in favour of PTI can change its fortunes.”

He added: “Economic challenges are so serious, grave, and the solutions so very painful that I am unsure how anyone who comes to power will steady the ship.”

If the election does not result in a clear majority for anyone, as analysts are predicting, tackling multiple challenges will be tricky – foremost being seeking a new bailout programme from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) after the current one expires in March.

Internet blackouts were effective in “multiple regions of Pakistan in addition to mobile network disruptions”, said Netblocks, a watchdog that monitors cybersecurity and the governance of the internet.

Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar congratulated the nation on the elections.

Without sharing details, he said turnout was high and that “voices, expressed through the votes, will contribute to the fortification of our democracy.”

“The participation and enthusiasm of people of Pakistan have been the cornerstone of this democratic exercise. The high voter turnout is a clear indication of public commitment to shaping the future of our country. The voices, expressed through the votes, will contribute to the fortification of our democracy, and for that, people of Pakistan deserve every bit of appreciation,” he said on X, formerly Twitter.

Pakistan’s Interior Ministry announced it had partially resumed mobile phone service in parts of the country, three hours after the voting drill came to an end.

The unprecedented total mobile phone shutdown reported around 8am, which was intended to prevent disruptions and flash protests, drew condemnation from rights groups.

Rights group Amnesty International condemned the shutdown. “It is reckless to impede access to information as people head out to polling stations on the heels of devastating bomb blasts and what has been an intense crackdown on the opposition in the lead-up to the elections,” said Livia Saccardi, interim deputy director for South Asia.

Pakistan’s Interior Ministry announced it had partially resumed mobile phone service in parts of the country, three hours after the voting drill came to an end.

The unprecedented total mobile phone shutdown reported around 8am, which was intended to prevent disruptions and flash protests, drew condemnation from rights groups.

Rights group Amnesty International condemned the shutdown. “It is reckless to impede access to information as people head out to polling stations on the heels of devastating bomb blasts and what has been an intense crackdown on the opposition in the lead-up to the elections,” said Livia Saccardi, interim deputy director for South Asia.

The primary rival of two leading candidates in Pakistan elections, Imran Khan is only allowed to watch the state broadcaster PTV in prison and he gets one newspaper a day, the English-language daily Dawn.

He planned to watch TV and read the paper on election day, his party said, and his lawyers will brief him when they get the chance to see him. Political analyst Azim Chaudhry referred to the way Khan’s party was treated as “pre-poll rigging.” “The whole election process seems to be a coronation,” he said.