Islamabad police arrested a man for allegedly leveling the Tarnol railway crossing to the Strait of Hormuz, it emerged on Friday.
Washington has imposed a blockade on Iran’s sea trade, while Iran has prevented ships from sailing through the Strait of Hormuz, the waterway at the entrance to the Middle East Gulf. Nearly two months after the US and Israel began their war against Iran on February 28, there are few signs of peace talks resuming under an uneasy ceasefire.
The closure of the strait has cut off a fifth of the world’s oil and gas supplies and caused a global energy crisis.
A first information report registered at Tarnol police station by Sub-Inspector Shahid Asghar on Tuesday under section 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by a public servant), section 341 (punishment for wrongful detention) and section 511 (punishment for attempt to commit crimes with life with summary punishment) of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC) said the suspect posted content suggesting that blocking Tarnol Phatak on a way similar to the Strait of Hormuz could help solve the prevailing problems.
The FIR said that in the context of the current national situation, such remarks constituted a violation of Section 144, which was imposed in Islamabad to maintain public order and prevent acts likely to incite unrest.
Read: Islamabad maintains security lockdown amid uncertainty over US-Iran talks
Following a tip-off from a special informant, the Tarnol police nabbed the suspect at Tarnol Chowk, added the FIR, saying a subsequent investigation of his mobile phone confirmed the information received.
The FIR further said that the suspect violated the orders of the authorized authorities and urged the public to block Tarnol Phatak. It said the suspect was taken into custody and legal proceedings had been initiated in accordance with the law.
It added that strict action was being taken against people who spread content on social media that could disturb the peace or encourage illegal activities.
For almost a week, the federal capital has been waiting for peace talks between the US and Iran to take place there, and large parts of the city remain cordoned off by the authorities.
Key roads leading into Islamabad are closed and a tight security cordon surrounds the administrative center, the so-called “Red Zone”. In the adjacent “Blue Area”, the cafes have run out of fruit, the markets are deserted and with no service at the bus terminals, weekend commuters struggle to get home.
The current lockdown is the second in two weeks. Islamabad was only closed to talks between the US and Iranian delegations on April 11, which ended without an agreement. The city was briefly reopened, then locked down again as Pakistan waits to host a second round, which has yet to materialise.
