China's ambassador to Pakistan was among the dignitaries waiting for the torch's arrival at a military section of Islamabad airport, where the flame arrived in the early hours of the morning, the BBC said.

The Pakistani leg of the torch relay was at a heavily guarded stadium before invited guests and media, CNN reported, marking the first time the public could not watch the torch's international trek leading up to the Beijing Summer Olympics. Instead, the 65 torch-bearers ran multiple laps around the stadium before passing the torch to the next runner.

Protests against China's policies on Tibet and Darfur forced previous torch runs to be shortened or diverted in Paris and San Francisco. In the Australian capital Canberra, police have been given extra powers to search spectators for items such as guns and knives during the Australian relay leg next week, the BBC said.