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A security officer has died after gunmen opened fire at soldiers in Pakistan at the start of the country’s general election.

The officer was killed on Thursday morning in the Tank area of Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa region, according to local police officials.

The incident reportedly took place at a polling station in the town of Kot Azam, according to the news agency Reuters, quoting local media.

It comes as people have begun casting their ballots in the country’s highly-charged election – the build-up to which has been marred by violence and claims of fraud.

On the eve of Thursday’s election, bombs struck two political offices in southwestern Pakistan, killing at least 30 people.

Tens of thousands of police and paramilitary forces have been deployed at polling stations to ensure security.

Mobile phone service has also been suspended across the country in what the government has described as a “security measure”.

Explained: The problems facing Pakistan as voters go to the polls

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Pakistan’s election explained

“As a result of the recent incidents of terrorism in the country precious lives have been lost, security measures are essential to maintain the law and order situation and deal with possible threats, hence the temporary suspension of mobile services across the country,” Pakistan’s interior ministry said in a post on X.

Tensions have been high in the country ahead of the vote.

Ex-cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan, founder of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party and the country’s former prime minister, remains the most popular politician in the country, according to polls.

However, last week, Khan was handed multiple prison sentences over a series of charges, among them corruption, leaking state secrets, and breaking the country’s marriage laws, and was banned from taking part in the vote.

A polling staff enters a polling station as a police officer stands guard in Gulbahar area in Peshawar, Pakistan, February 8, 2024. REUTERS/Fayaz Aziz
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A polling staff enters a polling station as a police officer stands guard. Pic: Reuters

Women wait outside a polling station for voting to begin on the day of the general election, in Lahore, Pakistan February 8, 2024. REUTERS/Navesh Chitrakar
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Women wait outside a polling station for voting to begin. Pic: Reuters


Khan’s initial arrest last year sparked violent protests in Pakistan.

The 71-year-old, who was ousted from power in a no-confidence vote in April 2022, has claimed the charges to be politically motivated.

His PTI party has also claimed its candidates have been denied a fair chance at campaigning in the run-up to the vote.

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Pakistan blasts leave dozens dead

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Meanwhile, several groups, including the Islamist militant Pakistani Taliban and separatist groups from Balochistan, who oppose the Pakistani state, have carried out a spate of attacks in recent months.

As many as 44 political parties are vying for a share of the 266 seats that are up for grabs in the National Assembly, or the lower house of parliament.

An additional 70 seats are reserved for women and minorities in the 336-seat house.

Whoever forms the government of the nuclear-armed nation will face huge challenges, from containing unrest, dealing with a military that wields considerable influence over Pakistan’s political system, overcoming the country’s ongoing economic crisis, and calming rising tensions with neighbours, including India.

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Two Chinese citizens captured during fighting in eastern Ukraine, Zelenskyy says

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Two Chinese citizens captured during fighting in eastern Ukraine, Zelenskyy says

Volodymyr Zelenskyy says two Chinese citizens have been captured while fighting in eastern Ukraine.

He said his forces had fought six Chinese soldiers and two of them had been taken prisoner. He added he had ordered officials to obtain an explanation from Beijing.

“We have information that there are many more Chinese citizens in the occupier’s units than just two. We are now finding out all the facts,” he added.

As it happened: Zelenskyy demands reaction from US

China is an ally of Russia and has been accused of helping its war in Ukraine, though Beijing has repeatedly denied allegations that it has supplied Kremlin forces with weapons.

“Russia’s involvement of China in this war in Europe, directly or indirectly, is a clear signal that Putin is going to do anything but end the war,” Mr Zelenskyy said. “He is looking for ways to continue the war.”

Mr Zelenskyy described China as having joined Russia’s war against Ukraine and said he expected the US to react.

There was no immediate comment from China.

How many Chinese are actually fighting for Russia?


John Sparks - Africa correspondent

John Sparks

International correspondent

@sparkomat

Were they volunteers – or mercenaries – who had signed up to fight in the Russian army on their own?

Alternatively, does the Chinese government sanction their involvement – or even encourage it? That would make the situation far more serious.

The capture of these Chinese nationals in Donetsk begs another question – how many Chinese are actually fighting for Russia? In his written post on social media platform Telegram, Volodymyr Zelenskyy said “there are many more Chinese citizens” other than these two.

Still, the Ukrainian president works hard to suggest the Chinese, officially at least, are blameless.

“Russia’s involvement of China in this war… is a clear signal that [Russian President Vladimir] Putin is going to do anything but end the war,” he writes on Telegram.

This is a generous interpretation of China’s approach to the conflict, which is quite openly contradictory.

Read more from John Sparks

Fighters of various nationalities have joined Russia’s army during the war, often in return for promises of large sums of money. This does not represent official interventions by their home countries.

North Korea has also sent thousands of its troops to support Russia.

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‘This could be very, very embarrassing for China’

After Mr Zelenskyy’s announcement, the Ukrainian foreign minister said he had summoned China’s diplomat for an explanation, saying on social media the presence of Chinese citizens in Russia puts Beijing’s stance for peace into question.

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Ukraine in Belgorod, almost out of Kursk

Last night, Mr Zelenskyy confirmed for the first time that Ukrainian forces are active in Russia’s Belgorod region.

He described the actions as “just”, adding: “war must return to where it came from”.

Meanwhile, regional governor Alexander Khinshtein said Russian forces are on the verge of reclaiming Kursk, months after Ukraine’s surprise incursion.

He claimed Russian forces had seized the settlement of Guyevo. Russian state news agency TASS said only two more settlements are left to recapture – Gornal and Oleshnya – to retake the entire region.

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What we learn from video of captured Chinese national in Ukraine – and the serious questions it raises

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What we learn from video of captured Chinese national in Ukraine - and the serious questions it raises

In a carefully written post on social media platform Telegram, Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused the Russian army of deploying Chinese citizens on the battlefield in eastern Ukraine.

What about the proof? Well, the Ukrainian president says his security services captured two people from China in the Donetsk region – along with identity documents, personal data and their bank cards.

Follow latest: Zelenskyy demands reaction from US

A video of a man in military fatigues who had been captured by Ukraine was pinned to the bottom of the statement.

We get snippets of a conversation where the alleged combatant seems to be talking about the events that led to his capture.

“When we arrived at the place… and then my commander.” The man gestures at the floor and ceiling, making shooting noises. “I was also injured.”

Volodymyr Zelenskyy uploaded  a video appearing to show a Chinese prisoner in Ukrainian custody.
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Volodymyr Zelenskyy uploaded a video appearing to show a Chinese citizen in military uniform in Ukrainian custody

These details will make it difficult for the Chinese government to deny the incident out of hand, although they are highly unlikely to supply additional information.

Important details like, who are they? What function(s) do they fulfil in Ukraine’s occupied territories?

Were they volunteers – or mercenaries – who had signed up to fight in the Russian army on their own?

Alternatively, does the Chinese government sanction their involvement – or even encourage it?

That would make the situation far more serious.

Read more:
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The capture of these Chinese nationals in Donetsk begs another question – how many Chinese are actually fighting for Russia? In his post, Mr Zelenskyy said “there are many more Chinese citizens” other than these two.

Still, the Ukrainian president works hard to suggest the Chinese, officially at least, are blameless.

“Russia’s involvement of China in this war… is a clear signal that [Russian President Vladimir] Putin is going to do anything but end the war,” he writes on Telegram.

This is a generous interpretation of China’s approach to the conflict, which is quite openly contradictory.

On one hand, Chinese President Xi Jinping describes China as a neutral party to the conflict, while simultaneously offering Mr Putin long-term political and economic support.

In fact, he described their partnership as a “no limits” one in a phone call with Mr Putin on the third anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Mr Zelenskyy then, is making a point with this post – but he does not want to make the situation any worse.

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What China could do next as Trump’s tariff war ramps up

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What China could do next as Trump's tariff war ramps up

The severity cannot be overstated, if an additional 50% tariffs are levied on all Chinese goods it will decimate trade between the world’s two biggest economies.

Remember, 50% would sit on top of what is already on the table: 34% announced last week, 20% announced at the start of US President Donald Trump’s term, and some additional tariffs left over from his first term in office.

In total, it means all Chinese goods would face tariffs of over 100%, some as high as 120%.

It’s a price that makes any trade almost impossible.

China is really the only nation in the world at the moment that is choosing to take a stand.

While others are publicly making concessions and sending delegations to negotiate, China has clearly calculated that not being seen to be bullied is worth the cost that retaliation will bring.

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Tariffs: Xi hits back at Trump

The real question, though, is if the US does indeed impose this extra 50% tomorrow, what could or would China do next?

It has said it will “fight to the end”, but what does that mean?

In reality, there are few good options.

There are some obvious measures that China will almost certainly enact.

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Further export controls on rare earth minerals (crucial for the development of high-tech products) are one example. China controls a huge proportion of the world’s supply, but the US would likely find workarounds in time.

Hiking tariffs on high-impact US products such as agricultural goods is another option, but there is only so far this could go.

The potentially more impactful options have significant drawbacks for Beijing.

It could, for instance, target high-profile American companies such as Apple and Tesla, but this isn’t ideal at a time when China is trying to attract more foreign investment, and some devaluation of the currency is possible, but it would also come with adverse effects.

Other options are more political and come with the risk of escalation beyond the economic arena.

In an opinion piece this morning, the editor of Xinhua, China’s state news agency, speculated that China could cease all cooperation with the US on the war against fentanyl.

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This has been a major political issue for Mr Trump, and it’s hard to see it would not constitute some sort of red line for him.

Other options touted include banning the import of American films, or perhaps calling for the Chinese public to boycott all American products.

Anything like this comes with a sense that the world’s two most powerful superpowers might be teetering on the edge of not just a total economic decoupling, but cultural separation too.

There is understandably serious nervousness about how that could spiral and the precedent it sets.

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