Pakistan ramps up security in capital ahead of key summit

Islamabad to shut down and deploy troops after militant violence, political unrest

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The Pakistani authorities were on Oct 13 preparing to shut down the capital Islamabad ahead of a Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit, overshadowed by recent militant violence and political unrest.

Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin and Chinese Premier Li Qiang will be among senior regional government officials attending the two-day conference on Oct 15 and 16.

In the weeks leading up to the summit, the Pakistani authorities have cracked down hard on dissent, banning an ethnic nationalist movement and introducing new laws that restrict protest in the capital.

They have also arrested hundreds of supporters of jailed opposition leader Imran Khan who attempted to march in Islamabad earlier in October.

A recent deadly attack on a convoy of Chinese engineers in the mega port city of Karachi has also deepened security fears in a country where separatist groups routinely target Chinese nationals.