Pakistani TikToker assaulted by hundreds of men in attack that shocks nation
Islamabad, Pakistan - An incident in which a young woman in Pakistan was assaulted, stripped, and tossed in the air by a massive crowd of men has triggered a national outcry against a string of such attacks in recent months.
The incident took place in the eastern city of Lahore, when a crowd of around 400 people assaulted a young female TikTok user while she was filming a video with her team in a national park on Saturday.
A horrific video of the incident has gone viral and drawn condemnation. Hashtag #lahoreincident, #ayeshaakram, and #400men are among the top Twitter trends in Pakistan.
Police have registered a case against 400 men and have begun a search with the help of the footage.
Politicians, rights activists, celebrities, and regular people renewed their calls for the protection of women in the country, as the incident took place weeks after the beheading of a former diplomat's daughter in the capital shocked the nation.
Prime Minister Imran Khan has spoken to the provincial police chief and asked him to arrest the culprits.
"The government won't spare a single person involved," the premier's close aide, Sayed Zulfiqar Bukhari, said on Wednesday.
Opposition leader Shehbaz Sharif condemned the incident on Twitter: "What is more worrying is the direction our society is headed in. The recent anti-women incidents are a reminder that malaise is deep-rooted."
Minister of finance for the Punjab region also tweeted, "The full might of the Govt will come down upon those involved in the horrendous Lahore incident."
Amnesty International asked authorities to "provide greater protection for women in public spaces, which women have every right to but are prevented from accessing fully, for fear of attacks exactly like this."
Cover photo: Screenshot/Twitter/Major Surendra Poonia