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Supporters of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan launched their long march on October 4 2026 from Lakki Marwat in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province with an initial crowd of about 5,000 carrying party flags and large banners according to AFP journalists on the ground. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi led the procession from a truck featuring a prominent image of Khan and announced that the convoy would reach Khairabad 80 kilometres west of Islamabad by Thursday. The group halted for the night near Karak with plans to resume travel around midday local time on Monday as additional participants from nearby districts join the caravan the BBC reported.
The demonstrators are calling for Khan’s release from prison his transfer to a hospital for medical treatment and permission for regular family visits citing concerns over the 73-year-old’s health in custody according to Al Jazeera. PTI chairman Gohar Khan stated that the weekend negotiations with the government collapsed because officials refused the party’s request for leaders to meet Khan to discuss political matters. The march had been postponed from September 27 to permit those talks which ended in deadlock the Independent noted.
Federal authorities have placed stacked shipping containers to obstruct major access routes into Islamabad and warned that the protesters will not be permitted to enter the capital according to statements by political adviser Rana Sanaullah. The government cited a recent increase in militant attacks in the northwest and has accused PTI of links to the Pakistani Taliban an allegation the party denies the Independent reported. Security forces have been on heightened alert for several weeks in preparation for the possible arrival of the marchers AFP said.
Imran Khan has been imprisoned at Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi since August 2023 and faces more than 100 cases including charges of corruption and leaking state secrets according to a Reuters summary of the legal actions against him. Khan denies all the allegations and maintains that the prosecutions are intended to remove him from political life with several convictions suspended or overturned on appeal but new cases keeping him detained the news agency added. His Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party continues to govern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa despite his absence from public office.
Earlier PTI protests have led to violence with the party claiming that 12 supporters died in clashes with security forces during a November 2024 demonstration in Islamabad although the government denied any protester fatalities Al Jazeera reported. That episode prompted hospitals and officials to face questions over records of the dead according to the same outlet. The current march therefore takes place against a backdrop of mutual distrust between the party and federal authorities.
Afridi released a detailed schedule showing the convoy stopping near Kohat on Monday night then proceeding toward Peshawar with supporters from districts such as Tank Dera Ismail Khan and the Waziristans joining at set times according to Dawn. The chief minister said that by the time the group assembles in Khairabad the movement will have extended to every corner of the country. Further decisions on the next steps will be announced at that location he added in a post on social media.
Sohail Afridi addressed participants from the lead vehicle urging them to engage actively in the political process. “This movement will have reached every corner of the country and every square will have become a centre of activity” he said according to the BBC. The chief minister whose province is under PTI administration described the march as a continuation of efforts to secure constitutional rights.
