Overview
- JI leader Hafiz Naeemur Rehman announced a nationwide peaceful strike for Sept. 3 to protest the petroleum levy and rising fuel and electricity prices.
- The Lahore sit‑in entered its 12th–13th day as JI scheduled public gatherings in Faisalabad (Aug. 28), Rawalpindi (Aug. 30), Peshawar (Aug. 31) and Swat (Sept. 4) to broaden the campaign.
- JI’s core demands are abolition of the petroleum levy, cheaper petrol and power bills for consumers, and cancellation or review of what it calls costly independent power producer (IPP) agreements.
- The party warned it will escalate from sit‑ins to market and major‑road shutdowns and could mount a long march to Islamabad if the government does not concede, and it has invited other opposition groups to join.
- Rehman tied the protests to wider governance complaints, citing the PIMS newborn deaths and alleged health‑sector failings, saying legal action against the levy is pending while the movement seeks to raise political pressure on the ruling coalition.