Tens of thousands of antigovernment protesters gathered in Pakistan's capital, Islamabad, late Friday in the pouring rain following the arrival of convoys led by a cricket star-turned-politician and a fiery anti-Taliban cleric.
The twin protests led by Imran Khan and the cleric Tahir-ul-Qadri represent the biggest challenge yet to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's year-old government, and security had been tightened across the capital amid fears of unrest in a country with a long history of chaotic politics and military coups.
The protesters left the eastern city of Lahore on Thursday, vowing to march to the capital and camp out there until their demands for a new government are met. - AP