Pakistani nationals hauled suitcases across the border from Iran, describing missiles being launched and travel chaos as they scrambled to leave the country after the US and Israel launched strikes over the weekend. AFP journalists saw a steady trickle of people passing through large metal gates at the remote border crossing between Iran’s Mirjaveh and Taftan in Balochistan. Powerful explosions have rocked Iran’s capital Tehran since Saturday, with embassies from countries around the world telling their citizens to leave. “All our Pakistani brothers who were in Tehran and other cities had started to leave and were arriving at the terminal, which caused a lot of crowd pressure,” 38-year-old trader Ameer Muhammad told AFP on Monday. Cargo trucks wait to enter the Pakistan-Iran border crossing at Taftan, Balochistan province on March 2, 2026 amid ongoing US-Israel strikes on Iran. —AFP/File “Due to the crowds, there were major transport problems.” The isolated Taftan border lies around 500 kilometres from Quetta...
Karachi’s MT Khan Road was closed again on Tuesday in response to the prevailing security situation in the city, according to the traffic police. Ten people were killed in Karachi on Sunday as protests erupted against the assassination of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in US-Israeli attacks. A ban on gatherings and rallies has also been extended across Sindh. An alert issued by the Karachi Traffic Police for District South at 5:38am said that both sides of MT Khan Road remained closed from the PIDC signal towards Jinnah Bridge for security reasons. As an alternative route, traffic from PIDC has been diverted towards Khajoor Chowk and Dr. Ziauddin Ahmed Road, and from Jinnah Bridge towards II Chundrigar Road, it said. Subsequently, the police issued another alert at 9:21am for traffic congestion on both sides of II Chundrigar Road from Jinnah Bridge towards Tower and Shaheen Complex due to the MT Khan Road closure. A map showing road closures in Karachi on March 3. — screengrab via Google Maps I...