Some 160 arrested over attacks on KFC branches in Pakistan amid anger over supposed links to Israel

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Around 160 people have been arrested after mobs carried out 20 separate attacks on KFC restaurants, with one employee shot dead, the Pakistani government says.

The American-founded fast food chain has become a target of protest and boycott calls by Islamist parties since the start of the war in Gaza, linking the brand to US support for Israel.

Crowds have protested outside KFC repeatedly this month, breaking windows, setting fires, and threatening staff.

“A total of 20 incidents occurred across Pakistan, with one fatality reported. The man was a staff member at KFC,” Pakistan’s Deputy Interior Minister Talal Chaudhry tells a news conference, describing KFC as “under attack.”

The KFC employee was shot dead at a branch on the outskirts of Lahore, the capital of Punjab province, on Sunday.

A police official tells AFP that it was unclear what the motive for the shooting was or whether it was linked to the recent protests.

Chaudhry says that 145 people were arrested in Punjab province and 15 in the national capital Islamabad over the spate of attacks.

“These restaurants source everything locally and employ Pakistani staff, and their earnings remain within the country,” he says.

KFC and its parent company Yum! Brands have not responded to requests for comment.

A KFC restaurant in the Pakistan-administered region of Kashmir was set on fire in March last year as protesters chanted “Free Palestine.”