Protests have damaged out throughout Pakistan following the arrest of former prime minister Imran Khan throughout a court appearance in Islamabad. Khan is going through a mess of costs since being ousted from energy last year in what analysts consider is a tactic utilized by Pakistani governments to quieten their opponents. If convicted, Khan could probably be prohibited from holding public workplace, stopping him from operating in elections slated for later this year.
The arrest comes after months of political turmoil and amid heightened tensions between Khan and the army. His supporters took out their anger on the military, storming the residence of the corps commander in Lahore and besieging the gate of the army’s common headquarters in Rawalpindi. Police had to use tear gas and water cannons to scatter protesters in Karachi and Lahore, who have been also blocking roads in Islamabad, Peshawar, and other cities.
Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah acknowledged that Khan’s arrest was made by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), Pakistan’s most prominent anti-corruption body. He added that the arrest was in accordance with the legislation and emphasised that the NAB operates independently of the federal government. It is at present unclear where Khan has been taken.
Khan’s relationship with the army, which supported his rise to power in 2018 however withdrew backing ahead of a parliamentary vote of no confidence in 2021, has been more and more strained. How-to has accused a high-ranking navy officer of plotting to kill him, prompting a warning in opposition to making “baseless allegations.”
Michael Kugelman, the director of the South Asia Institute on the Wilson Center, commented on the timing of Khan’s arrest, suggesting that the senior army leadership is bored with repairing their relationship with the ex-PM and could additionally be sending a message along with his arrest.
Before his detainment, Khan recorded a video urging his supporters to respond in assist of “true freedom.” Protests have since escalated throughout the nation, while authorities have limited entry to varied social media platforms and imposed a total web shutdown in some areas, in accordance with global web monitor NetBlocks..