Right-wing organisations and some political parties opposed to the reopening of NATO supply lines through Pakistan into Afghanistan took to the streets in Lahore on Sunday to begin a long march to Islamabad.
The call for a long march to Islamabad against reopening the supply lines was given by the Difa-e-Pakistan Council of which the Jama’at-ud-Da-wah (JuD) is a key component. The protesters are expected to reach the federal capital by Monday evening where they propose to protest in front of Parliament.
Though the DPC — which includes jihadi organisations — said the march would be conducted peacefully, security has been strengthened along the 275 km-long stretch from Lahore to Islamabad.
The DPC — a coalition of religious and political organisations — was put together in December after the NATO attack on the Salala border outpost which left 24 Pakistani soldiers dead. Pakistan closed the supply lines immediately after the November 26 attack and reopened it only this past Tuesday.
Members of the DPC — which includes the ‘father of the Taliban’, Maulana Sami-ul Haq and a former ISI Director General Hamid Gul — have often sought to take credit for the delay in reopening the supply lines.
