Press Freedom Under Attack: Islamabad Police Storm Into Pak Press Club, Assault Reporters Covering AJK Protest

The heart of Pakistan's journalism community turned into a battleground on Friday when Islamabad police stormed the National Press Club (NPC). Their target was Kashmiri journalists covering protests against the Shehbaz Sharif government, but what followed left reporters bloodied and outraged.

Videos now flooding social media show a grim scene-baton-wielding officers barging into the club, dragging men outside, and striking them down as cameras rolled. The raid unfolded as protests organised by the Azad Jammu and Kashmir Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) continued outside the NPC, denouncing alleged atrocities in Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir.

Journalists inside, however, became collateral. Anas Mallick, a correspondent with Asia One TV, said the police acted like "thugs" in uniform. Hamid Mir, a senior voice in Pakistan's media, revealed that officers had intended to grab JAAC members but instead unleashed their fury on reporters sitting in the cafeteria.

The backlash was immediate. The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) condemned the attack and demanded accountability. Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, under growing pressure, called the assault unacceptable. He ordered an inquiry and disciplinary action, stating bluntly: "Violence against the journalist community cannot be tolerated."

One image, now viral, captures the chaos perfectly: a lone journalist clutching his camera as a policeman tries to drag him down. "How can police storm the press club without orders and assault journalists?" wrote Syed M Abubakar on social media, voicing what many saw as a direct attack on press freedom guaranteed by Pakistan's Constitution.

Meanwhile, Kashmir remains tense-human rights violations, internet blackouts, and deepening unrest fuel protests that the state seems intent on silencing. For many, the raid at NPC is not just an isolated clash, but a grim reminder of how fragile journalism remains in Pakistan