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ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Pakistan’s essential opposition chief and former prime minister, Imran Khan, was arrested Tuesday, authorities mentioned, elevating the stakes of the nation’s political disaster and sparking clashes between his supporters and police.
The arrest prompted demonstrations throughout the nation, and widespread web outages have been reported. Safety forces deployed tear fuel and water cannons in confrontations with Khan supporters in Lahore, Karachi, Peshawar and different cities. The previous prime minister’s social gathering claimed that a number of protesters have been killed and dozens injured. Authorities didn’t instantly launch their very own figures.
Some demonstrators focused navy websites — a uncommon focus in a rustic the place the navy wields substantial energy.
Khan was ousted by parliament final April after, in keeping with his allies, the navy dropped its help for him. Public disputes between Khan, the navy and the federal government of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had mounted in depth over the previous days, after Khan accused a senior officer of involvement in an assassination try in opposition to him in November, which he narrowly survived. Navy and authorities officers have strongly denied these claims.
Khan, who is anticipated to run usually elections later this yr, has described himself for months because the sufferer of a plot. A number of makes an attempt to arrest him failed, together with one in March that resulted in violent clashes.
Pakistani authorities mentioned Khan’s arrest on Tuesday was linked to a corruption and cash laundering case that has been evolving for months. The previous prime minister additionally faces a variety of different prices in separate circumstances, all of which he has rejected.
Pakistani authorities mentioned that they had unsuccessfully sought Khan’s cooperation within the corruption probe. He was subsequently arrested by officers on excessive court docket premises within the capital, Islamabad, the place he was to attend hearings linked to completely different circumstances on Tuesday.
Pakistani police battle protesters in try to arrest opposition chief
Footage distributed by Khan’s social gathering confirmed the opposition chief being pushed right into a regulation enforcement automobile. Officers mentioned the arresting officers — members of a paramilitary power — have been working on a warrant from the nation’s anti-corruption watchdog.
They denied accusations from Khan’s allies that the previous prime minister was overwhelmed throughout his arrest. Neither aspect instantly supplied proof to again its claims.
As he left his residence within the metropolis of Lahore to attend the scheduled court docket hearings in Islamabad early Tuesday, Khan launched a video message during which he mentioned he’s “able to go to jail,” however added that the accusations in opposition to him are unsubstantiated.
Later, in a response to Khan on Twitter, Sharif, the prime minister, accused his predecessor of “blatant lies, untruths, U-turns, and harsh assaults on establishments.” He charged that Khan was bending “the judiciary to your whims and behaving as if guidelines don’t apply to you.”
However members of Khan’s social gathering, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, or Motion for Justice, say they think the timing of his arrest suggests it’s politically motivated. The federal government has repeatedly sought to delay key regional votes this yr after Khan carried out above expectations in by-elections final October, and it not too long ago appeared to expire of choices to stall additional, its critics say.
The nation’s deteriorating financial state of affairs has develop into the highest concern amongst many citizens, with the present authorities and Khan buying and selling blame over the basis causes of the disaster. Monetary specialists worry that the nation could also be on the verge of defaulting on its worldwide loans.
Amir Khan, a 28-year-old who protested in help of the previous prime minister’s launch in Peshawar on Tuesday, mentioned radical measures are wanted to confront Pakistan’s mounting challenges.
“This time we’ll train the federal government a lesson,” he mentioned, including {that a} “revolution is required to revive civilian management.”
“If a frontrunner and former prime minister will not be secure, how might a typical citizen be protected?” requested Ihtesham ul Haq, a 22-year outdated civil engineer who additionally attended the protest.
Noack reported from Doha, Qatar, and Nawaz Khan from Peshawar, Pakistan.