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Unrest continues in Pakistan over the arrest of former prime minister Imran Khan, who pleaded not guilty to corruption charges.
Clashes spread across multiple major cities, with Khan’s supporters breaking into military properties and setting the homes of army personnel ablaze.
In Lahore, the supporters of the former cricket star stormed the house of the local corps commander’s, smashing some of the furniture and making away with some. Scores of vehicles and public installations were set alight.
Khan was arrested on May 9 in the capital Islamabad after being accused of illegally acquiring land to construct a university as well as of unlawfully selling gifts sent to him by foreign leaders while in office. He, however, denied any wrongdoing.
In a pre-recorded statement released on YouTube by Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party after his arrest, the former prime minister said he was “detained on incorrect charges” and told his supporters “the time has come for all of you to come and struggle for your rights.”
The Pakistani army has accused Khan and his supporters of crossing a red line, saying that military property and installations have been “systematically attacked” and that “anti-army slogans were raised.”
“Any further attack on the army, including all law enforcement agencies, military and state installations and properties, will be severely retaliated against,” the military said in a May 10 statement, its first since Khan’s arrest. “The full responsibility of which will be on the very group that wants to push Pakistan into civil war.”
From his side, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif called Khan’s supporters “terrorists” and has told them to “behave or face punishment.”
As of May 11, at least eight people have died nationwide in the protests and 1,400 have been arrested, the Pakistan Police said.
Private schools were ordered shut nationwide. The government also blocked mobile internet services, disrupting access to Twitter, Facebook and YouTube. Popular apps and digital payment systems have also been shut down.
Authorities in three of the country’s four provinces have imposed an emergency order banning all gatherings, Reuters reported. In addition, certain countries, including the United States, issued travel advisories.
Khan was removed from the post of Prime Minister in April 2022 as a result of a vote of no confidence passed by parliament. Last November, the 70-year-old survived a shooting at a political rally, in what his party called an assassination attempt.
Unrest will likely continue in Pakistan in the upcoming few days as the judge overseeing Khan’s case has ordered that he be remanded in custody for eight days. Before that, the former prime minister can’t seek bail. Any attempt to further delay his release could lead to more violence.
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