ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Monday acquitted former prime minister Imran Khan and his close aide, Shah Mahmood Qureshi, in a case relating to the leaking of state secrets, Khan’s lawyer and his party said.
Khan and Qureshi were serving 10 years in prison on charges of making public a classified cable sent to Islamabad by Pakistan’s ambassador in Washington in 2022, in what is commonly known as the cipher case.
Khan has said the cable was proof of a conspiracy by the Pakistan military and the US to topple his government in 2022 after he visited Moscow just before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Washington and Pakistan’s military deny that accusation.
Khan and Qureshi, who were convicted in the case in January this year, had appealed the decision in the Islamabad High Court, which set aside their convictions on Monday.
“Thank God, the sentence is overturned,” Naeem Panjutha, a member of legal team of Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, said on X.
Sayed Zulfikar Bukhari, a PTI member and a close Khan aide, also confirmed the development on X. “Conviction in Cypher Case set aside by IHC, appeals of IK [Imran Khan] and SMQ [Shah Mahmood Qureshi] allowed,” he said.
In response to Monday’s judgment, the Pakistani government, which says Khan violated clauses of the state secrets law by revealing contents of the secret diplomatic cable, said the prosecution was awaiting the detailed judgment to decide whether it would appeal the acquittal.
“If the prosecution felt like they should go into appeal then after reading the [detailed] judgment and analyzing all the details, it is the prosecution’s job and the prosecution is at liberty to decide,” Aqeel Malik, a government spokesman, told reporters at a press conference.
The state secrets case was one of the four cases in which Khan was convicted weeks before Pakistan’s national election in February. His sentences in two other cases have been suspended.
But Khan will remain in prison to serve a seven-year sentence in another case relating to his marriage to his third wife, Bushra Bibi, which contravened Islamic traditions.
The ex-premier, who was ousted in a parliamentary no-trust vote in April, has been in jail since last August. Arguably Pakistan’s most popular politician, Khan says all cases against him are politically motivated to keep him out of politics.
Pakistan court acquits ex-PM Khan, aide in state secrets case
https://arab.news/j88sn
Pakistan court acquits ex-PM Khan, aide in state secrets case
- The case centered around an alleged diplomatic cable that Khan used to claim his ouster in 2022 was part of ‘foreign conspiracy’
- Pakistan’s government says the prosecution is awaiting the detailed judgment to decide whether it will appeal against the acquittal
Pakistan’s president defends ongoing strikes in Afghanistan, urges Kabul to dismantle militants
- Afghanistan on Thursday launched attacks in retaliation for Pakistani airstrikes the previous Sunday
- Pakistan’s military says it is only targeting Afghan military installations to avoid civilian casualties
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s president on Monday defended his country’s ongoing military strikes in neighboring Afghanistan, saying Islamabad tried all forms of diplomacy before targeting militants operating from Afghan territory, and called on the Taliban government in Kabul to disarm groups responsible for attacks in Pakistan.
Pakistan earlier said it is in “open war” with Afghanistan, alarming the international community. The border area remains a stronghold for militant organizations including Al-Qaeda and the Daesh (Islamic State) group.
“(The Afghan Taliban) must choose to dismantle the terror groups that survive on conflict and its war economy,” Asif Ali Zardari said during a speech to lawmakers, adding that “no state accepts serial attacks on its soil.”
Afghanistan on Thursday launched attacks in retaliation for Pakistani airstrikes the previous Sunday. Since then, Pakistan has carried out operations along the border, with Information Minister Attaullah Tarar claiming the killing of 435 Afghan forces and the capture of 31 Afghan positions.
Kabul has denied such claims.
In Afghanistan, the deputy government spokesman Hamdullah Fitrat said Pakistan’s military fired mortar shells at a refugee camp in eastern Kunar province, killing three children and injuring three others.
Afghanistan’s defense ministry said Afghan forces carried out strikes targeting a Pakistani military facility near Paktia province, causing “substantial losses and heavy casualties.”
Pakistan’s military did not respond to questions. It has said Pakistan is only targeting Afghan military installations to avoid civilian casualties.
Pakistan has witnessed a surge of violence in recent months and blames it on the outlawed Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan or TTP. It operates both inside Pakistan and from Afghan territory.
Islamabad accuses Afghanistan’s Taliban government of providing safe havens for the TTP, which Kabul denies.
The latest cross-border fighting ended a ceasefire brokered by Qatar and Turkiye in October. The two sides failed to reach a permanent agreement during talks in Istanbul.
Zardari reiterated Pakistan’s call for talks, saying, “We have never walked away from dialogue.”
The Pakistani leader again accused Afghanistan of acting as a proxy for India by sheltering militant groups.
“Stop being used by another country as a battlefield for their ambitions,” he said.
Zardari cited a recent report from the United Nations Security Council’s monitoring team that described the presence of militant groups in Afghanistan as an extra-regional threat.
