The Pakistani government deployed the army on the streets of the capital Islamabad and two provinces, including Punjab — Pakistan’s most populous — to restore order after violent protests erupted following the arrest of former prime minister Imran Khan.

Khan – who was ousted in April 2022 but remains popular and is expected to return to power soon – was arrested on Tuesday as he arrived at a court in Islamabad where he was to be tried in a corruption case in which he was accused.

The former cricket star’s arrest angered supporters of his party, the Tehreek-e-Insaf (Pakistan Movement for Justice) and immediately sparked protests across the country.

Police and paramilitaries have been deployed on the streets of major cities, mobile phone services have been disrupted, and schools and offices remain closed in two of the country’s four provinces.

Protesters stormed army buildings, ransacked a general’s residence in Lahore, eastern Pakistan, and set fire to public buildings in other areas.

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At least five people have lost their lives since yesterday in the violent incidents.

“There has not been such a sight in the last 75 years. Citizens became hostages in their own cars, patients were forced out of ambulances, which were then set on fire,” Prime Minister Shebaz Sharif said in a televised address.

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“There is a real propaganda campaign against the Tehreek-e-Insaf party and they are trying to portray us as violent terror-mongers. The nation must continue with peaceful protests where it can,” Cressy said in a statement on his Twitter account.

Police have arrested more than 1,650 protesters in Khan’s native Punjab, the House leader said in a statement.

About 80 workers in Khan’s party were also arrested in the southwestern Pakistani city of Quetta, police said.

If Khan is convicted of most of these cases, he will be barred from holding public office. Parliamentary elections are scheduled to be held in the country next November.