A fire broke out in shipping containers near Islamabad’s Khanna Police Station on Saturday, which had been positioned to block roads in anticipation of potential protests. The incident was captured in a video that quickly went viral on social media.
Rescue officials reported that the fire was triggered during welding operations on the containers. Firefighting teams from Islamabad Fire and Rescue successfully extinguished the flames, and authorities confirmed that no injuries or fatalities occurred as a result of the blaze.
To prevent Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) protesters from entering the capital, Islamabad police had blocked several key road sections, including major motorway routes: M-1 (Islamabad to Peshawar), M-2 (Islamabad to Lahore), M-3 (Lahore to Abdul Hakeem), M-4 (Pindi Bhattian to Multan), M-14 (Hakla to Yarik), and M-11 (Lahore to Sialkot). These closures were primarily for road maintenance but also to control movement.
In addition to these measures, around 30,000 security personnel have been deployed in the city to maintain law and order. This includes 19,000 officers from Punjab Police, 1,000 from Azad Jammu and Kashmir, 5,000 from Sindh, and 5,000 from the Frontier Corps. These units will support Islamabad’s police in managing any protests. With about 11,000 officers already stationed in the city, the combined security forces are prepared to maintain control amid rising tensions.
