For nearly a week, the capital of Pakistan<\/b> has been waiting for peace talks between the US and Iran.<\/p>\n
Although there is no indication that the two sides will meet, large parts of the city remain cordoned off by authorities.<\/b><\/p>\n
Major roads leading into Islamabad have been closed and a tight security cordon surrounds the administrative capital, the so-called “Red Zone.” In the adjacent “Blue Zone,” cafes have run out of fruit, markets are deserted, abandoned and with no buses at the starting points, weekend commuters are struggling to find a way to reach their homes.<\/b><\/p>\n
Government officials say the measures will not be lifted anytime soon and that they are ready at any moment for the arrival of delegates, including the U.S. president,Donald Trump<\/b>, at the last minute.“We have been told the talks could take place any day,”<\/b> one official said.<\/p>\n
The lockdown is the second in two weeks. Islamabad was first sealed off for the April 11 meetings between the U.S. and Iranian delegations, which ended without agreement.<\/b> The city briefly reopened, then closed again as Pakistan waits to host a second round that has yet to take shape.<\/p>\n
For residents, insecurity has become the biggest difficulty. Islamabad is a city of transients, where many residents work during the week and return to their family home on weekends. Now, that pattern has been disrupted.<\/p>\n
Abdur Rehman Irshad, a manager at the bus station<\/b>, said the station had been closed for five to six days, excluding more than 1,000 passengers each day. “People come here because it is a people’s station,” he said. “But they leave without doing anything.”<\/p>\n
In the lobby of a luxury hotel, journalists who came to the city from around the world to report on the talks are in their own limbo. The cameras remain in place. The equipment is ready. The phones are checked over and over again. But after a week on hold, there’s not much to broadcast.<\/p>\n
The situation has also hit the city’s food supply. <\/p>\n
.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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