Lahore, Pakistan, October 10, 2025 — A protest march by Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) turned violent in Lahore on Friday evening, leaving one protester dead and 22 others injured, according to party and rescue officials cited by *Dawn*.
The confrontation unfolded as TLP supporters tried to push through city roads on their way toward Islamabad for an anti-Israel demonstration outside the US embassy. Dawn reported that the group reached Shahdara Bridge late on Friday night after earlier clashes at Chauburji Chowk, where protesters were attempting to remove obstacles and continue their march.
A TLP spokesperson, Usman Naushahi, told Dawn.com that one supporter had died and 22 others had been injured. Separately, Edhi spokesperson Younis Bhatti said several policemen were also hurt in the clashes, and that Edhi volunteers transported injured personnel to hospitals in Lahore. The report did not give a consolidated official casualty total for police, but it made clear that the violence affected both protesters and security forces.
The episode landed amid a broader security operation around the planned march. Dawn reported that the Ministry of Interior had directed the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority to suspend 3G and 4G services in Islamabad and Rawalpindi from midnight on October 10 until further notice, while authorities also prepared road closures, container blockades and traffic diversions in the capital. Islamabad police had circulated a diversion plan and said heavy vehicles would not be allowed into the city until further orders.
According to the same report, the government had also started detaining TLP leaders, activists and workers in advance of the rally, with local police taking custody of at least 280 people on Thursday. Officials said about 7,000 security personnel were being deployed across Islamabad, including police, Frontier Constabulary personnel and Rangers, to prevent the gathering from reaching the capital.
Federal ministers and parliamentary figures sharply criticised the party's tactics after the clash. Minister of State for Interior Affairs Tallal Chaudhry said the government recognised the right to protest but argued that demonstrations must remain within constitutional limits and not end in violence. He accused the movement of repeatedly bringing mobs to protests and attacking security personnel. In the National Assembly, Speaker Ayaz Sadiq and Parliamentary Secretary Asia Ishaq also questioned the purpose of the rally at a time when the Gaza ceasefire agreement had already been announced.
The reported death and injuries underscore how quickly a political march in Pakistan can become a public-order emergency when it meets a hardened security response. They also show the extent to which the state was willing to pre-empt the protest beyond Lahore, with telecom restrictions, road sealing and mass deployments in the capital and surrounding districts.
For residents in Lahore and the Islamabad-Rawalpindi corridor, the immediate impact was not only the injuries on the ground but the wider disruption to movement, communications and daily life. Dawn's reporting indicates that the march was halted for the night at Shahdara Bridge, but the confrontation had already produced casualties and raised the likelihood of further restrictions as the protest movement continued.
