After the arrest of former Pakistani Prime Minister Khan, his supporters took to the streets. There are riots with the police in several cities. Meanwhile, there is said to be one dead and several injured.
The arrest of former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan has sparked protests in several cities across the country. Clashes broke out between supporters of the politician and the police. The party of the imprisoned ex-prime minister, the Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), called on its supporters to paralyze the country. “Your time has come, people of Pakistan. Khan has always stood up for you, now it’s time to stand up for him,” the party tweeted.
In Kahn’s hometown of Lahore, hundreds of supporters followed the call and blocked streets, and the police were put on high alert. According to government sources, a supporter of Khan was killed in clashes in Quetta. According to city police, at least ten people were injured, including six security guards.
Supporters of the imprisoned ex-PM Khan block a road in Karachi.
Demonstrators also stopped traffic in the port city of Karachi. Protests are also reported from the city of Rawalpindi. There, according to media reports, supporters of Khan stormed the main building of the Pakistani military. According to other reports, Internet services such as Twitter, Facebook and YouTube are only working to a limited extent in some parts of the country.
arrest at court date
The 70-year-old Khan was arrested by anti-corruption agency (NAB) officials at a court hearing in the capital, Islamabad, a senior PTI official said. The arrest warrants were issued by the NAB.
Security forces escort a car carrying former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan.
TV channel Geo-TV showed Khan being put into an armored vehicle, which drove away with him. It was not immediately clear whether he was being held in Islamabad or had been transferred to another location.
Election commission speaks of bribery
The background to the arrest was one of the many cases of corruption for which Khan had to answer, said a security official from the dpa news agency. The former prime minister is charged with bribery. He is accused of selling government gifts he received as prime minister. The electoral commission accuses him of having hidden the income from the electoral tribunal.
Khan repeatedly stayed away from court dates. In March, the police stormed his home in the metropolis of Lahore to look for weapons. At that time, too, there were violent arguments between the officials and his supporters.
Khan suspects a conspiracy
In April 2022, a vote of no confidence ousted Khan as prime minister after nearly four years in office. In recent months he has repeatedly called for mass protests and new elections. The former cricketer claims his ouster was illegal and the result of a conspiracy by the government of his successor Shehbaz Sharif and the US government. He calls for early elections.
Since his ouster, the Pakistani judiciary has brought new allegations against Khan. He now has to answer in court in more than 80 cases – including corruption, money laundering and insulting a judge.