Labourers sit next to election campaign posters on a roadside ahead of the upcoming general elections in Rawalpindi on January 9, 2024. Pakistan will vote in elections on February 8, with rights groups warning the ballot will lack credibility with popular opposition leader Imran Khan jailed and barred from contesting. (Photo by Aamir Qureshi/AFP Photo)





An elderly man poses as he sells cotton candy in Islamabad, Pakistan, Wednesday, January 10, 2024. (Photo by Rahmat Gul/AP Photo)





A motorcyclist rides past a wall painted with Pakistan People's Party (PPP) logo along a street in Karachi on January 12, 2024, ahead of the upcoming general elections. (Photo by Asif Hassan/AFP Photo)





A canine chase a target during a racing competition on the outskirts of Charsadda on January 14, 2024. (Photo by Abdul Majeed/AFP Photo)





Supporters of jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf party attend a rally ahead of the general elections in Karachi, Pakistan, 14 January 2024. Pakistan's Supreme Court on 13 January rejected the attempt by former Prime Minister Imran Khan's party to retain its traditional electoral symbol of a cricket bat. The latest setback for the jailed leader ahead of the general election. The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party has been at odds with powerful army generals and alleges a military-backed crackdown to keep it out of the election race. With the symbol stripped, PTI candidates will need to use individual symbols to contest the election, potentially confusing voters, especially in rural areas with low literacy rates. The election campaign has been lackluster and uncertain, with Imran Khan disqualified from contesting, while his main rival, former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, has been cleared of all court cases and a lifetime ban, positioning him as the frontrunner with alleged military support. The army said that it is apolitical. (Photo by Shahzaib Akber/EPA/EFE)





A boy sits over onion shells at a vegetable market in Lahore on January 15, 2024. (Photo by Arif Ali/AFP Photo)





A Pakistani man, right, prepares to make a famous food “Kabab” at a restaurant in Islamabad, Pakistan, Tuesday, January 16, 2024. (Photo by Rahmat Gul/AP Photo)





A police officer stands guard at the main entry gate of Pakistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in Islamabad, Pakistan, Thursday, January 18, 2024. Pakistan's air force launched retaliatory airstrikes early Thursday on Iran allegedly targeting militant positions, an attack that killed at least seven people and further raised tensions between the neighboring nations. (Photo by Anjum Naveed/AP Photo)





A young supporter of Nawaz Sharif, Pakistan's former Prime Minister and leader of the Pakistan Muslim League (PML) party, cheers during an election campaign rally in Hafizabad of Punjab province on January 18, 2024. (Photo by Arif Ali/AFP Photo)





Supporters of Muttahida Qaumi Movement of Pakistan, attend an election campaign rally in Karachi, Pakistan, Sunday, January 21, 2024. (Photo by Fareed Khan/AP Photo)





Families of missing persons, who have been protesting against enforced disappearances, leave after they called off their sit-in protest, in Islamabad, Pakistan, 24 January 2024. Baloch protesters, who had been camped outside Islamabad's National Press Club (NPC) since December 2023 to protest against enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings, called off their sit-in following a request from the NPC to the Islamabad police for their removal. The letter was later withdrawn amid criticism, and the NPC clarified that it had always provided a platform to the protesters. The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan expressed solidarity with the protesters and highlighted concerns about efforts to uproot the camp. The protesters announced their decision to head back to Balochistan, emphasizing their struggle to address the issue of missing persons and criticizing the lack of attention from political parties during election campaigns. (Photo by Sohail Shahzad/EPA/EFE)





A supporter of jailed farmer prime minister Imran Khan wearing facemask displaying his picture stands along a street in Rawalpindi on January 24, 2024, ahead of Pakistan's upcoming general election. (Photo by Farooq Naeem/AFP Photo)





Supporters of former prime minister Imran Khan and political party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) attend an election campaign rally in Karachi, Pakistan, Sunday, January 28, 2024. Pakistani police fired tear gas to disperse supporters of former Prime Minister Imran Khan in the southern city of Karachi on Sunday, less than two weeks before a national parliamentary election that Khan was blocked from running in because of a criminal conviction. (Photo by Fareed Khan/AP Photo)





Pakistani police fired tear gas to disperse supporters of former prime minister Imran Khan and political party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) during an election campaign rally in Karachi, Pakistan, Sunday, January 28, 2024. Pakistani police fired tear gas to disperse supporters of former Prime Minister Imran Khan in the southern city of Karachi on Sunday, less than two weeks before a national parliamentary election that Khan was blocked from running in because of a criminal conviction. (Photo by Fareed Khan/AP Photo)





An injured police officer lies on the road during a clash with supporters of former prime minister Imran Khan's party, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), at a rally ahead of a general election, in Karachi, Pakistan, on January 28, 2024. (Photo by Reuters/Stringer)





Pakistani police detain supporters of jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf (PTI) party during an election campaign and for the release of Khan from prison, in Peshawar, Pakistan, 28 January 2024. Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) on 28 January began its first countrywide power show, as ticket holders and workers prepared to hold rallies and public meetings in their constituencies, amid fear of arrest. The party also launched its 158-page manifesto, covering major issues in Pakistan. Security forces detained dozens of PTI's activists, following past incidents of protests turning into riots. The party has been facing challenges, including the deprivation of its symbol “bat” and the contesting of election by ticket holders as independent candidates. Despite these obstacles, PTI candidates and supporters are actively engaging in the election campaign, urging people to come out and cast their votes in their favor on 08 February. (Photo by Bilawal Arbab/EPA)





A man walks on a damaged truck trailer after an attack by unidentified armed men in Kolpur, near Quetta, Pakistan, on January 30, 2024. (Photo by Naseer Ahmed/Reuters)





Gauhar Bano Qureshi, left, daughter, and Mehriene Qureshi, wife of Shah Mahmood Qureshi, a deputy leader of Pakistan's former Prime Minister Imran Khan's “Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf” party, speak with media following a special court decision, outside the Adiyala prison, in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, Tuesday, January 30, 2024. A Pakistani court on Tuesday sentenced former Prime Minister Khan and one of his party deputy Qureshi to 10 years in prison each, after finding them guilty of revealing official secrets. (Photo by Anjum Naveed/AP Photo)





Pakistan police stand guard at a checkpoint after intensified security following a court verdict imprisoning former Prime Minister Imran Khan to 10 years, in Peshawar, Pakistan, 30 January 2024. Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan and his top aide Shah Mahmood Qureshi have been sentenced to 10 years in jail for leaking official secrets, just days before the general elections scheduled for 08 February. The sentencing took place following a trial conducted within the prison where Khan has been detained, despite previous rulings declaring the jail trial as illegal. Khan and Qureshi are accused of leaking diplomatic correspondence between Washington and Islamabad during Khan's tenure as prime minister. The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party has vowed to challenge the decision in a higher court. The case has raised serious questions about the transparency of the trial and has been marred by allegations of pre-vote rigging, with Khan's party facing suppression. (Photo by Arshad Arbab/EPA/EFE)





An auto rickshaw with Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) flags make its way through a flooded street in Karachi on February 4, 2024, ahead of the upcoming general elections. (Photo by Asif Hassan/AFP Photo)