Mobile phone services slowly resume in Karachi

E-Paper | March 16, 2026

File photo

KARACHI: Mobile phone services slowly started to resume in Karachi Friday evening after being blocked throughout the city earlier due to terrorism threats and security concerns.

Cellular services were suspended from 11 am to 6 pm in Karachi, Pakistan’s commercial capital.

Militants in Pakistan often detonate bombs using cellular phones and the government has implemented similar service suspensions in the past.

On an occasion, Interior Minister Rehman Malik had stated that 90 per cent of bombs set off by militants in Pakistan have been detonated using cell phones.

Mobile phone services were last suspended in the country on the 9th and 10th of Muharram. The government had decided to block networks for varying periods in about 50 cities across the country to provide security to mourners.

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Zohaib

Dec 28, 2012 10:02am

Agreed!!!!

Recommend 0

Khalid Rajpar

Dec 28, 2012 08:05am

every action of government shows that how disable and orphan state holders are and they are miserably failed to maintain peace and security in state and now distrubing peace within lives of very common person. huh alas.

Recommend 0

Zohaib

Dec 28, 2012 10:01am

Government should avoid such types of activities.

Recommend 0

Tamilselvan

Dec 28, 2012 01:19pm

Agree. Any Govt. would do it as a precaution. Going after people who have guns is the next step. Explosives can be triggered remotely with cell phones and it is a good step to prevent chaos in any city of the world. Even if it helps save one innocent life it's worth it

Recommend 0

Sam

Dec 28, 2012 08:59pm

Why dont they completely permenantly ban mobile phones in karachi 24/7/365?

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no chamcha, real talk

Dec 28, 2012 10:26am

please, it is sake of our people. why cant u all understand.

Recommend 0

Gerry D'Cunha

Dec 28, 2012 07:53pm

after electricity and gas supplies being suspended every day for hours, our mobile phones will soon be suspended in karachi without notice. Poor karachites

Recommend 0

Jimmy Butt

Dec 28, 2012 11:18am

Ban guns instead of mobile phones.

Recommend 0

abdussamad

Dec 28, 2012 03:37pm

That phone in the picture reminds me of a time when mobile services were available 24/7/365.

Recommend 0

Akhyar

Dec 28, 2012 05:12pm

as instructed by Mr. RM, terrorists do not perform their duties before 9am and after 6pm. thank you very much for understand, Mr. RM is an equal opportunity provider.

Recommend 0

Akhyar

Dec 28, 2012 05:09pm

totally agreed, for last five years these people have proven their incompetency in every single day of their tenure.

Recommend 0

msilyas

Dec 28, 2012 09:06am

It would be better for the most incompetant Government of Pakistan to impose the curfew for their whole tenure (5 Years) throughout the country when they came in power. It would be more helpful to prevent the chances of terrorism.

Recommend 0

Samad

Dec 28, 2012 09:03am

It was better for the current Incompetant government to impose the curfew throughout the country when they came in the power for five years. It would be better to prevent the chances of terrorrism.

Recommend 0

Dec 28, 2012 09:00am

Instead of suspending mobile phone service government should go after bad people via finding their location through phone location make sense? Well Pakistan and Pakistani nation and their leader all are messed up, what a joke and messed up Islamic country is Pakistan well every Islamic regime is same way messed up and lost nations

Recommend 0

Jaffar Zaidi

Dec 28, 2012 08:58am

We should realize that this is due to our Intelligence network......

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Arsalan

Dec 28, 2012 08:44am

"The Jumma prayer will be performed on Saturday instead of Friday due to security reason" -Rehman Malik-

Recommend 0

Morad786

Dec 28, 2012 06:22am

If this saves lives, than the inconvenience is worth it!

Recommend 0

azfar

Dec 28, 2012 06:23am

Will their be no security fear after 6:00 pm?....strange act by RM

Recommend 0

faisal

Dec 28, 2012 08:18am

Oh I feel so secure now.

Recommend 0

Wish

Dec 28, 2012 07:46am

Shame on our GREAT GOVERNMENT. They can ONLY shut down services but will never be able to curb the terrorists.

Recommend 0

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