Punching the air and roaring in unison, ecstatic crowds joined a growing demonstration on Wednesday in support of Pakistan's jailed ex-prime minister Imran Khan, an opposition show of force that authorities had sought to avert.
Supporters of Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party began their so-called "long march" on Sunday, demanding the former prime minister's release and airing anti-government sentiment fuelled by harsh economic conditions.
"I joined this procession for one reason: Imran Khan's release. I will not return under any circumstances until he is released," 58-year-old Qalandar Khan told AFP in northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, ruled by the PTI.
"If the government and the establishment think they can remove Imran Khan ... they should know that he has a place in our hearts," said the protester from the mountainous North Waziristan area.
A hugely popular former cricket star, Imran Khan has been behind bars since August 2023 and faces scores of charges ranging from corruption to treason following anti-establishment riots also in 2023.
He and his legal team reject the allegations, branding them as politically motivated cases aimed at neutralising his popularity.
"Imran Khan wanted to establish peace in the country and eliminate corruption," said protester Pir Fayyaz, 40, a property dealer from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
"We have become deeply frustrated with inflation, lawlessness, poor governance and terrorism in the country," he added.
"We are Khan's soldiers," Sohail Afridi, PTI chief minister for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, shouted down a microphone as he addressed crowds south of Peshawar city, ahead of the fourth day of the march.
From atop a truck with a 5-metre-high (16-foot) platform festooned with smiling pictures of the jailed former prime minister, Afridi reiterated PTI demands including access in prison to Khan for doctors, party officials and relatives.
Raising his fist in the air, Afridi asked the crowd: "Are you ready to march to Islamabad?"
The packed crowd of protesters, some holding red-and-green party flags or clutching pictures of Khan, cheered back: "We are ready."
A police intelligence official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told AFP there were 1,500 vehicles and some 5,000 to 6,000 people travelling within the convoy in the PTI's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa stronghold.
With fears of potential violence, authorities have been preparing for weeks for the possible arrival of demonstrators in the capital Islamabad, with the march originally slated for September 27 and then postponed until Sunday.
On Tuesday, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif urged the PTI to call off the march and re-enter negotiations with the government. Talks between the two sides hit an impasse in the early hours of Sunday before the march began.
The Pakistani premier also warned of the demonstration's negative impact on the economy, saying that undermining the government's efforts would be met with the force of law.
The march is yet to pass outside the confines of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, leaving open the possibility of an agreement between the opposition and the government to end the demonstration.
"We are not taking the law into our own hands," 40-year-old Bismillah Jan said from the march.
He added, however, that: "All party workers, including myself, are ready to make any sacrifice for Imran Khan."
The demonstration pressed to Khyber tribal district, with the PTI and Pakistan flags flying, music blaring from loudspeakers, and vehicles showered in flower petals.
Farmer Changiz Khan, 58, was dressed in the red and green colours of Khan's party.
"The country is currently experiencing a continued decline," he told AFP.
"We believe that after Imran Khan's release, the country will return to the path of development."
"We will continue the struggle until we achieve our objective and gain control over our own land," he added.