Thursday Briefing: The stakes of Pakistan’s elections

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February 8, 2024

By Amelia Nierenberg Writer, Briefings

Good morning. We’re covering Pakistan’s elections and a last-ditch effort in the U.S. to salvage aid for Ukraine.

Plus, a fight over the origins of butter chicken.

Flags for Nawaz Sharif’s party on sale in Lahore. Saiyna Bashir for The New York Times

What’s at stake in Pakistan’s elections

Pakistan is holding its national elections today. Experts say they will be among the least credible in the country’s history. Days before the vote, Imran Khan, who was ousted as prime minister in 2022, was sentenced to a total of 24 years in prison in two separate verdicts. The sentences were widely seen as part of a military-led campaign to sideline Khan’s political party.

Tensions are running high. Yesterday, two separate explosions outside election offices in an insurgency-hit area of Pakistan killed at least 22 people.

The sites of two explosions in Balochistan Province. By The New York Times

For more on the elections, I reached out to Christina Goldbaum, our Afghanistan and Pakistan bureau chief.

What is the mood in Pakistan right now?

Christina: The military’s crackdown on Imran Khan and his party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, or P.T.I., has made this one of the most lackluster election cycles we’ve seen in Pakistan.

There hasn’t been the usual boisterous campaigning from political parties. Up until a few weeks ago, many people doubted that the elections would actually take place in February.

Right now, many people feel demoralized by the military’s intimidation campaign. A common refrain is that this is a “selection” — not an election — as in: The military has predetermined the winner. So why bother to vote?

How has the military intervened in the election?

The military has been much heavier-handed this time around, mostly because Khan managed to make a remarkable comeback after his ouster and stoked widespread anger at the military among his supporters that turned violent in May.

Ahead of this election, analysts tell me there was a sense among the top military brass that they needed to regain control.

They turned to their usual tactics: Arresting P.T.I. leaders and pressuring them to denounce the party. But the military also cast a much wider net, arresting members of the elite who have traditionally had strong ties to the military. They also arrested casual supporters of the party, like young people who posted pro-P.T.I. messages on social media.

That’s had a real chilling effect, including in places like Punjab — the political heart of Pakistan — that had never experienced such a heavy hand by the military.

Who is expected to win?

Most people expect a victory by the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, or P.M.L.N., which is the party of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif.

Sharif has been prime minister three times, but he’s had each term cut short after falling out with the military.

What will you be watching after the election?

The next prime minister is going to inherit an economic mess, not to mention a surge in terrorist attacks over the past two years. Once the election is over, many hope that the military will turn its attention to reining in the militant groups in the country’s tribal areas.

Since Khan was ousted, the military has also taken on a larger role in shaping Pakistan’s economic policy. That could lead to friction with Sharif, if he wins. He is known for being pro-business and built his reputation on reviving economic growth and building major infrastructure projects.

He has also pushed for more civilian control in government. That raises a lot of questions about how long his current relationship with the military will last.

The ruined city of Vuhledar, Ukraine. Tyler Hicks/The New York Times

The U.S. failed to pass Ukraine aid

Senate Republicans have blocked a bill that would have paired tens of billions of dollars in aid to Ukraine and Israel with stringent border security measures.

What’s next? Democrats anticipated that the bill would fail and planned to quickly force a vote on a stand-alone bill that would take up the foreign aid without the border deal. But even if that bill passes the Senate, it would face stiff headwinds in the House, where right-wing lawmakers are vehemently opposed to sending more assistance to Ukraine. Here’s the latest.

In Ukraine: A Russian missile and drone attack killed at least five people, local officials said.

Israel’s leadership said it authorized the military to advance toward Rafah, in southern Gaza. Mohammed Salem/Reuters

‘No solution besides total victory’ in Gaza

Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s prime minister, dismissed Hamas’s counterproposal for a cease-fire in Gaza yesterday. He said that “surrender to the ludicrous demands” would neither restore Israel’s security nor free the remaining hostages. “There is no solution besides total victory,” he said. His comments appeared to undercut wary hopes of progress toward a deal.

Background: In response to an offer negotiated by Qatari and Egyptian mediators, Hamas had submitted a proposal of its own. It outlined a path to the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza and the release of Hamas’s remaining hostages in exchange for thousands of Palestinians held in Israeli jails.

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Nikki Haley campaigning in South Carolina this week. Travis Dove for The New York Times

Other Big Stories

Culture

A Morning Read

Butter chicken at Daryaganj, a restaurant owned by one of the families making a claim to the dish. Anindito Mukherjee for The New York Times

Two families in India both say they invented butter chicken — the creamy, heavenly marriage of tandoori chicken and tomato gravy that is beloved everywhere north Indian food is served. Each family had an ancestor named Kundan and claims he was the original chef.

A court has been asked to solve the bitter dispute.

Lives lived: Sebastián Piñera, Chile’s former president, strengthened the country’s democracy but faced protests over his economic policies. He died in a helicopter crash at 74.

We hope you’ve enjoyed this newsletter, which is made possible through subscriber support. Subscribe to The New York Times.

Young players wearing lêkê in Abidjan, Ivory Coast. Joao Silva/The New York Times

Ivory Coast runs on $1.50 plastic sandals

We mean that literally.

In the West African country, plastic sandals known as lêkê (pronounced leh-keh) are the preferred gear for pickup soccer — and almost everything else. Players praise the sandals for their practicality and comfort, although they need to be replaced frequently since the straps often break after only a few weeks.

It is unclear how the shoe became so popular in Ivory Coast, but most players said they had been wearing them since they were toddlers.

Johnny Miller for The New York Times

Cook: Thit heo kho trung (or pork and eggs in caramel sauce) is a rich Vietnamese treat.

Read: A Nigerian author suggests books to take you through Lagos.

Listen: Spend five minutes with John Coltrane.

Declutter: Sort through your fridge.

Play Spelling Bee, the Mini Crossword, Wordle and Sudoku. Find all our games here.

That’s it for today’s briefing. See you tomorrow. — Amelia

P.S. The Times added 300,000 digital subscribers in the fourth quarter of 2023. If you’re one of them, thank you.

We welcome your feedback. Send us your suggestions at briefing@nytimes.com.

Correction: Yesterday’s newsletter misstated the number of Israeli hostages captured on Oct. 7 who have died. A fifth of the remaining 136 hostages have died, not a fifth of the overall number, which was roughly 240.

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