Karachi Paralyzed by Protests Over Parachinar Crisis

A wave of protests by the Majlis Wahdat-e-Muslimeen (MWM) against the ongoing crisis in Kurram district's Parachinar has brought Karachi to a standstill, causing significant disruptions to the city's traffic. The protests, which began on Thursday, show no signs of abating, with the MWM vowing to continue until their demands for peace in Parachinar are met.

The protests have left commuters facing a nightmare as main arteries in the city have been blocked by the MWM, causing massive traffic jams throughout the city. The Karachi Deputy Inspector General of Traffic Police, Ahmed Nawaz Cheema, has acknowledged that citizens are facing difficulties due to the sit-ins, with international passengers missing their flights. The police have provided alternative arrangements and routes to avoid traffic jams, but the situation remains chaotic.

The situation in Parachinar has been dire, with over 130 people reported dead, and reports of a shortage of medicines and oxygen. The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has denied reports of child fatalities, but MWM leaders have expressed outrage over the handling of the crisis. MWM leader Allama Hasan Zafar Naqvi has called on the government to restore lasting peace to the Kurram region and has threatened to expand the protests to every divisional headquarters of Pakistan if their demands are not met.

The MWM's central leader, Allama Raja Nasir Abbas Jafri, has described the situation in Kurram Agency as a "human tragedy," highlighting the deaths due to lack of food and medicine. He has called on the government to accept the demands of the Parachinar people and to take concrete steps to address the ongoing crisis. The protests are expected to continue, putting even more pressure on the government to address the situation in Parachinar.

The ongoing protests by the MWM in Karachi are a stark reminder of the dire situation in Parachinar, where hundreds of people have lost their lives due to the ongoing crisis. As the protests continue, it remains to be seen how the government will respond to the demands of the MWM and the people of Parachinar, but one thing is certain - the situation requires urgent attention and action to prevent more lives from being lost due to the ongoing crisis.