Associated Press
Hundreds of supporters of a key Islamist party began a sit-in protest in the garrison city of Rawalpindi late Friday after authorities detained dozens to prevent them from holding the rally in Pakistan's neighboring capital, citing security reasons, officials said. The Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan party originally issued a call for holding the sit-in near the parliament building in Islamabad to pressure the government to withdraw a substantial increase in electricity costs, which have drawn nationwide criticism. Naeem-ur-Rehman, who heads Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan, told demonstrators in Rawalpindi that he was willing to stage the sit-in even for weeks.