Pakistan opposition sets ultimatum for government to step down

Pakistan’s opposition demanded on Friday that Prime Minister Imran Khan and his administration resign within two days, raising the stakes in a protest campaign that the government has denounced as a threat to democracy.

The campaign is the first concerted opposition challenge that cricket star-turned-politician Khan has faced since he won a general election last year promising to end corruption and create jobs for the poor.

“I’m giving a two-day deadline for the resignation,” the leader of the campaign, religious party chief Fazl-ur-Rehman, told a rally of tens of thousands of supporters in the capital, Islamabad.

The opposition says Khan’s government is illegitimate and is being propped up by the military, which has ruled Pakistan for about half of its history and sets security and foreign policy.

The military denies meddling in politics and Khan has dismissed the calls to step down.