Army Chief calls Prime Minister to avoid violence over sit-in

ISLAMABAD (APP): Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa has urged Prime Minister (PM) Shahid Khaqan Abbasi to opt for strategy that avoids violence and clashes as the country cannot be pushed into turmoil.

In a message delivered by Major General Asif Ghafoor Bajwa, Director General (DG) of Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the army chief said that clashes are not in national interest and cohesion.

COAS telephoned the Prime Minister and suggested to handle Islamabad sit-in peacefully avoiding violence from both sides as it is not in national interest & cohesion.

The development has come in after the federal government resorted to coercive methods to end nearly 20-day long sit-in in Faizabad of the federal capital that has sparked countrywide tensions.

Police and armed forces have been called in by provincial governments including Chief Minister (CM) Shehbaz Sharif-led Punjab to check protests and street violence.

On Friday night, an operation that was launched has resulted in one person dead while over a 100 wounded as some 2,000 protesters clashed with contingents of police. The officers resorted to teargas and rubber bullets firing, retaliating to which the workers of religious parties hurled stones at them.