Crisis Chronology

PAKISTAN

01/18/2024

Pakistan bombs sites in Iran said to be linked to the Baloch insurgency. The Balochistan Liberation Front (BLF) and the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) were allegedly present. Both groups — which claim their regions are independent — are considered terrorist organizations by Pakistan. The BLA is also considered a terrorist group by the U.S., the European Union and China.

01/17/2024

Pakistan accuses Iran of violating its airspace in the attack on 1/16.

01/16/2024

Iran bombs militant group Jaish al-Adl, the “Army of Justice,” in Pakistan. The Jaish al-Adl has been launching deadly attacks against Iranian border guards since at least 2013 and has previously claimed bombings and kidnappings of border police. The group is a Baloch Islamist organization. The two countries have generally maintained an amicable relationship.

11/02/2023

Government sets election for 2/8/24.

11/01/2023

Pakistan begins forced deportation of undocumented Afghans, many of whom have lived in Pakistan for years. There are about 1.7 million Afghans in Pakistan.

10/21/2023

Nawaz Sharif returns to Pakistan from self-exile after he was granted protective bail, meaning he cannot be arrested until after his next court appearance. His seven-year sentence was suspended for medical reasons, and though he was supposed to return in six months, he has been in London for four years. He speaks at a rally that seems like a campaign event, though it is not clear yet that he will be allowed to run.

09/21/2023

Elections set for 1/24.

08/29/2023

Court suspends Khan’s conviction and orders his release. Khan’s Tehrik-e-Insaf Party has been suppressed and essentially cannot participate in future elections, date to be determined, which are required after the dissolution of parliament. Without Khan, the elections will be a contest primarily between two largely unpopular figures: former Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, the brother of three-time premier and Khan nemesis Nawaz Sharif, and Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, the country’s former foreign minister and the son of assassinated former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto and former President Asif Zardari.

08/14/2023

Following the dissolution of parliament, President Arif Alvi appoints Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar to be Caretaker Prime Minister. Kakar was nominated by opposition leader Shehbaz Sharif.

08/05/2023

Court finds Imran Khan guilty of corruption—concealing assets after selling state gifts—and sentences him to three years in prison, beginning immediately. He could be barred from politics and therefor from holding his position as leader of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party.

07/30/2023

Deadly bomb blast at a party gathering of the conservative Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI-F) party in a city north of Peshawer.

06/30/2023

The IMF and Pakistan agree on staff-level package of $3 billion in a Stand-By Arrangement (SBA), a last-minute rescue package for the country facing an acute balance of payments crisis. The IMF Executive Board will consider the agreement in mid-July.

05/12/2023

Islamabad court gives Khan two-week bail.

05/10/2023

Supreme Court declares Khan’s arrest “illegal” and rules that he should be presented to the Islamabad court on 5/12.

05/09/2023

When Imram Khan appears outside court for his corruption trial, security forces arrest him. Protests, some militant, erupt almost immediately and police use water cannons and tear gas to suppress them. The High Court declares the arrest legal. Internet access to social media is restricted, apparently by the government.

05/07/2023

Pakistani Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari meets with Afghanistan’s Taliban-appointed foreign minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi, in Islamabad and the two countries agree to try to reduce border tensions and to increase trade.

04/04/2023

Supreme Court orders that Punjab, the country’s most populous state, can hold elections on May 14, deeming a recent government decision to postpone polls in it and another state as “unconstitutional.”

03/23/2023

Election commission delays Punjab assembly vote from 4/30 to 10/8 after government, citing financial constraints, refuses to provide the necessary funds and polling staff. Khan calls this a violation of the constitution.

03/16/2023

Local authorities say the suspension was ordered to allow a soccer match to be played.

03/15/2023

Court orders a suspension of the operation to arrest Khan.

03/14/2023

Police attempting to serve Imran Khan with arrest warrants are surrounded by Khan’s supporters and fire tear gas water cannons at them.

03/05/2023

Police serve an arrest warrant on Khan in a case related to the purchase of gifts.

02/22/2023

Khan’s party launches a “fill the jails” protest in Lahore, where authorities have imposed restrictions on public gatherings.

01/29/2023

Islamic militant sets off explosion in mosque in Pakistan, killing at least 100 and injuring many more.

01/23/2023

Nationwide power outages after grid fails.

01/16/2023

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province Chief Minister Mahmood Khan said on Sunday that the summary for the dissolution of the provincial assembly would be sent to the governor on 1/17. Khan is a supported of Imran Khan, who likely asked him to dissolve the provincial assembly.

01/14/2023

Provincial leader of Punjab says he will hold new elections. Punjab is ruled by a Punjab is one of two provinces ruled by a coalition partner of Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) party.

01/09/2023

More than forty countries pledge a total of $9 billion to rebuild Pakistan.

01/09/2023

More than forty countries pledge a total of $9 billion to rebuild Pakistan.

12/20/2022

Pakistani forces kill all Taliban occupants of the center.

12/19/2022

Pakistani Taliban members seize control of a counterterrorism center in northern Pakistan, demanding safe passage to Afghanistan.

12/07/2022

Election commission begins process that would remove Khan as head of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party over “false statements and incorrect declaration.”

11/28/2022

Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan ends ceasefire with Pakistan government and orders its fighters to resume attacks across the country.

11/24/2022

Shabaz appoints Lt. Gen Asim Munir, a former spy chief, to replace army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa, whose term ends 11/29.

11/03/2022

Gunman fires on Imran Khan’s truck during a campaign rally, wounding him in the leg. Several others are also shot. Khan's injury is not serious and he will recover.

10/21/2022

Election commission disqualifies Khan from holding a seat in parliament due to “corruption” and bans him from running for office for five years.

10/03/2022

Islamabad High Court expresses satisfaction with Khan’s written apology and dismisses the case against him.

09/19/2022

Islamabad High Court orders that terrorism charges against Khan be dropped.

09/14/2022

One-third of the country remains under water, and the likelihood of widespread waterborne disease increases daily.

09/08/2022

Court rules that it will indict Khan on 9/22 for contempt of court in regard to his comments about a lower court judge.

09/05/2022

Rains have created a 100-mile-wide inland lake.

08/30/2022

Monsoon rains continue. More than 33 million people have been affected by the rain and flooding. Qatar says it will invest $3 billion in Pakistan.

08/29/2022

Government says that the IMF has approved reviews financial support program for Pakistan and will release more than a billion dollars to the country, which is on the brink of financial collapse.

08/26/2022

Extreme flooding in Pakistan has killed at least 1000 and displaced at least a million people.

08/25/2022

Khan is given very low amount for bail.

08/22/2022

Khan charged with terrorism for his comments on the judges who allowed his supporters to be arrested.

07/27/2022

Supreme court rules that Elahi was wrongfully denied victory in the legislature vote and must be installed as chief minister immediately.

07/22/2022

Punjab legislature votes to retain Hamza Sharbaz Sharif, the son of the country’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, as the province’s chief minister. Khan’s candidate for chief minister, Parvez Elahi, won 186 votes but the provincial assembly’s deputy speaker, Dost Muhammad Mazari, invalidated 10 of those votes over violations of voting regulations. Under Pakistani law, votes are disqualified if legislators vote contrary to their party’s instructions.

07/18/2022

Khan’s party wins the legislature in Punjab, a marked victory for him.

05/25/2022

Clashes between PTI marchers and police, who have set up roadblocks in Punjab to prevent Khan supporters from entering cities.

05/24/2022

Government bans pro-Khan march after a policeman is killed.

05/22/2022

Khan calls on supporters to march to Islamabad to protest his removal.

04/09/2022

Parliament elects opposition leader Shehbaz Sharif prime minister. Khan’s PTI boycotts vote. There are protests against the removal of Khan. Shehbaz quickly raises the minimum wage and government pensions.

04/09/2022

No-confidence vote against Khan passes. The opposition parties now have the votes to confirm a prime minister who will be able to lead the government until as long as 8/23, when the next election is scheduled.

04/08/2022

Supreme Court rules that it was unconstitutional for Khan to dissolve parliament and orders it to reconvene. The no-confidence vote is expected to be held on 4/9.

04/05/2022

Supreme Court hears opposition arguments on whether Khan had the right to dismiss parliament and call new elections.

04/04/2022

Deputy speaker of parliament, a member of the ruling party, rules that the no-confidence vote is unconstitutional and Khan dissolves parliament and calls new elections. The opposition Pakistan Peoples Party, led by Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, calls for a sit-in until there is a vote on the no-confidence motion. It was clear that Khan would lose the vote.

03/30/2022

The Muttahida Qaumi Movement Pakistan (MQM-P) party leaves the ruling coalition government, depriving Khan of crucial support in the no-confidence vote debate.

03/29/2022

Opposition coalition, the Pakistan Democratic Movement, introduces no-confidence motion against Khan.

03/25/2022

Speaker of the House delays no-confidence vote due to a tradition of refraining from activity after the death of a member of parliament. The delay may allow Khan’s supporters to woo back dissident members of his party. Khan has also filed suit in the Supreme Court to invalidate the votes of dissident party members. Khan is also hoping the IMF will disburse more of its support aid.

03/08/2022

No-confidence motion against Khan is accepted in parliament because of a weak economy and high inflation. A vote will be held in the coming weeks.

02/23/2022

Complex geopolitical balance in South Asia. Pakistan had hoped that a Taliban government in Afghanistan would mitigate Pakistan Taliban (TTP) attacks in Pakistan. However, attacks have spiked recently, planned by TTP members in Afghanistan. Though Pakistan is providing humanitarian aid to Afghanistan, it has not recognized the government. The Taliban has not committed to restraining the TTP. TTP members are extorting money from Pakistani businessmen and politicians.

01/28/2022

Baluch Liberation Front attacks Pakistani army outpost in Kech District, Baluchistan, killing ten. The Baloch nationalists seek greater control of their territory in Afghanistan, Iran, and Pakistan, which is mineral-rich. Pakistan has long accused India of supporting the Baluch militants, but since the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan, that support seems to have diminished, and the support provided by the former Afghan government has disappeared. At the same time, the Baluch group seems to be getting support from the TTP, the Pakistani Taliban, that has recently resurged.

01/10/2022

Government asks IMF to delay its meeting about releasing $1 billion aid because it has failed to pass legislation about fiscal restraint.

11/08/2021

Government lifts ban on Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) after it agrees to halt its march to Islamabad, which has caused clashes with police.

10/27/2021

Continued clashes between police and Tehreek-e-Labbaik protestors.

10/25/2021

Government releases 350 members of the conservative Islamist Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) religious group, which has been protesting the arrest of its leader, Saad Rizvi for four days. The TLP was declared a “proscribed organisation” under anti-terrorism legislation by the Pakistani government in April, after Rizvi demanded the French ambassador be expelled. days after police first arrested Rizvi. Though a court later ruled that there was insufficient evidence to hold Rizvi, he has not been released. The government is negotiating with the TLP.

07/19/2021

Afghanistan recalls all senior diplomats from Pakistan after the ambassador’s daughter is abducted and tortured.

07/17/2021

Afghanistan sends negotiating group about its military situation to Pakistan.

07/02/2021

Khan defends Chinese practices in Xinjiang province regarding Uighurs and praises China’s one-party system.

03/29/2021

Khan removes finance minister because of rising inflation.

03/29/2021

Khan removes finance minister because of rising inflation.

03/20/2021

Khan tests positive for COVID-19, two days after he receives a first vaccination. He will quarantine.

03/08/2021

No-confidence vote against Khan fails.

02/25/2021

Pakistan-India ceasefire

India and Pakistan agree to stop cross-border shooting. The landmark agreement was brokered by the United Arab Emirates, according to reports a week later.

10/29/2020

Second knife attack kills three in France. It follows a decapitation by an Islamist in France and French government denunciation of Islamist radicals. Turkey and Pakistan denounce Islamophobia as the attacks become an international controversy.

09/28/2020

Former president Ali Zardari is arrested in corruption investigation for money laundering. Shebaz Sharif, leader of the PML-N, is also arrested. Both deny the charges.

09/24/2020

Opposition parties, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and others, unite to protest against Khan and the involvement of the military in politics.

08/28/2020

Highest flooding in Karachi since records have been kept in 1931 after the heaviest rains in a hundred years.

08/25/2020

Taliban claims responsibility for a bombing in the north. A Taliban official is in Pakistan for talks of an unspecified nature.

05/29/2020

An airliner crash focuses attention on its chief, a former general, and the fact that many military officers are now part of the government and running businesses.

05/29/2020

An airliner crash focuses attention on its chief, a former general, and the fact that many military officers are now part of the government and running businesses.

05/07/2020

Government says it will ease stay-at-home restrictions beginning on 5/9, despite COVID-19 cases rising. Pakistan has about 24,000 cases and 550 deaths.

04/13/2020

Exchange of fire between India and Pakistan in Kashmir.

02/16/2020

India tells Turkey not to interfere in Indian domestic matters after Erdogan and Pakistani PM Khan issue a joint statement condemning the lockdown in Jammu and Kashmir.

01/13/2020

High Court says special court that sentenced Musharraf to death was unconstitutional.

12/18/2019

Pakistan pulls out of a meeting of Muslim nations in Malaysia scheduled to start 12/19. The Saudis had expressed concern that the meeting would create a rival bloc to the Organization of Islamic Cooperation.

12/18/2019

Pakistan pulls out of a meeting of Muslim nations in Malaysia scheduled to start 12/19. The Saudis had expressed concern that the meeting would create a rival bloc to the Organization of Islamic Cooperation.

12/16/2019

Musharraff condemned to death for treason when he declared emergency rule. Musharraff is in exile in Dubai.

11/10/2019

India and Pakistan open a new border crossing for Sikh pilgrims that does not require a visa.

11/01/2019

Large protest calling on Khan to resign, organized by Fazl-ur-Rehman.

10/28/2019

Maulana Fazlur, leader of the Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam (JUI-F) who ran against Khan, is organizing a country-wide march against the president. He has gained the support of other opposition parties. Khan has lost support due to his tax increases and a perceived failure to gain international support against India’s takeover of Kashmir. Prices have risen and the economy is slowing.

10/28/2019

Second grenade attack in two days, in northern Kashmir, a few days ahead of a visit by right-wing EU officials.

10/18/2019

Schools and shops remain closed as a form of citizen protest against the absorption of Kashmir.

10/14/2019

Khan in Iran for talks with Iran Pres Rouhani.

10/07/2019

Government troops halt protestors marching to the Pakistan border with Kashmir, demanding an independent Kashmir.

09/30/2019

Kashmir remains in lockdown by the government, but also by antigovernment agitators. Almost all the province’s leadership are in jail. The anti-government militants are intending to make the situation so bad that the government cannot ignore the suffering.

09/25/2019

Rouhani says that Iran is willing to resume adhering to the JPCOA if US sanctions are lifted. It would also agree to further negotiations on details of the treaty then. Imran Khan says Trump asked him to mediate with Iran, as did Saudi Arabia. French Pres Macron says conditions are in place for Rouhani and Trump to talk.

08/28/2019

Protests growing in Kashmir.

08/21/2019

Two killed in gun battle in Kashmir, the first clash since the lockdown began. Pakistan reports that three Pakistanis are killed in firing across the Line of Control and India reports that a soldier was killed by Pakistani troops firing across the Line. Protests have been held in Srinigar.

08/11/2019

Scattered protests in Kashmir, which remains locked down by government forces.

08/11/2019

Scattered protests in Kashmir, which remains locked down by government forces.

08/07/2019

Pakistan downgrades diplomatic ties and suspends trade with India.

08/07/2019

Taliban attack in Kabul, just days after the beginning of Eid. Peace talks with Taliban are nonetheless progressing and may have affected India’s decision about Kasmir. One observer suggests that India fears that after a settlement in Afghanistan, Pakistan would direct more of the Pakistani-allied jihadist groups, who operate in Afghanistan and Kashmir, against India.

08/06/2019

Pakistan calls for international intervention in Kashmir and Jammu. Khan arranges to address the UN Security Council.

08/05/2019

The upper house in India approves the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Bill that would make Kashmir a union territory with a legislature and Ladakh a union territory without a legislature.

08/03/2019

India government removes Article 370, which gives special autonomous authority from the Muslim government of Jammu and Kashmir. The territory is held under strict control and thousands of troops are detailed to the territory. All telephone landlines and cable television service is interrupted indefinitely. There is a ban on gatherings of more than four people and strict curfew.

06/10/2019

Former president Asif Ari Zardari is denied bail and arrested on a money-laundering charge. Some see it as political revenge.

05/12/2019

Government agrees to $6 billion loan from IMF. It has in the past received $5.8 billion in loans and is also deeply in debt to China.

05/12/2019

The Balochistan Liberation Army bombs luxury hotel in Balochistan Province, killing five. The hotel is part of a Chinese project there, as a protest against Chinese investments.

04/09/2019

Khan says that Pakistan will no longer support militias. The economy is failing and the government is seeking a rescue package from the IMF.

03/27/2019

Pakistan shoots down at least one Indian fighter jet. Military forces are massing on both sides of the border.

03/26/2019

Afghanistan recalls its ambassador to Pakistan after PM Khan suggests that the current Afghan government is an obstacle to peace and that a new interim government should be formed.

03/02/2019

Shelling across the border between India and Pakistan; there are some killed. Reports suggest that India’s bombing run did not hit any militant targets.

03/01/2019

Indian pilot whose aircraft was downed returns to India.

02/28/2019

Pakistani media shows images of downed Indian pilot being treated well and says it will return the soldier. Indian protests that displaying prisoners for propaganda purposes violates the Geneva Convention.

02/26/2019

India carries out airstrikes on suspected Islamist militant camps in Pakistan.

02/13/2019

Islamic State attacks Revolutionary Guard post near Pakistan, killing twenty-seven.

12/24/2018

Sharif sentenced to seven years in prison for hiding his real relationship with a steel mill in Saudi Arabia. He is likely to appeal.

10/23/2018

Pakistan receives a $6 billion loan from Saudi Arabia.

09/30/2018

Pakistan cuts Silk Road loan from China from $8 billion to $6 billion and suggests it could cut another $2 billion.

09/30/2018

Pakistan cuts Silk Road loan from China from $8 billion to $6 billion and suggests it could cut another $2 billion.

09/19/2018

On appeal, court suspends the sentence of Nawaz Sharif and his daughter. The case remains on appeal to the Supreme Court.

08/17/2018

Imram Khan formally elected prime minister with 176 votes of 342.

08/08/2018

Najib pleads not guilty to three new charges in connection with money laundering.

08/08/2018

Government begins disarming rebels in Nigeria Pool region.

07/16/2018

Sharif appeals 10-year jail term.

07/06/2018

Sharif sentenced to ten years in prison and fined $10 million in corruption case involving overseas properties.

02/20/2018

Supreme rules that Sharif cannot be leader of his party, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz

01/20/2018

New outbreak of fighting between India and Pakistan military on Kashmir border.

01/02/2018

US threatens to withhold aid from Pakistan because of its “double game” in regard to terrorists in the country.

01/02/2018

US threatens to withhold aid from Pakistan because of its “double game” in regard to terrorists in the country.

11/27/2017

Protests are called off after the law minister resigns.

11/26/2017

Second day of protests by Tehreek-e-Labaik Pakistan against a proposed new law that would relax rule that all political candidates must swear that Mohammed was Islam’s final prophet. The protestors, led by cleric Allama Khadim Hussain Rizvi, want the justice minister to resign. This second day was peaceful, in contrast to the previous day when the military was called out.

11/14/2017

Anti-corruption court issues arrest warrant for Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, who is the father of Nawaz Sharif’s son-in-law. He has rejected calls to resign.

11/06/2017

Pakistan Chief of Army Staff in Iran to discuss issues including common border security.

11/03/2017

Former PM Nawaz Sharif appears at Pakistan Supreme Court anticorruption trial.