LONDON: The ex-wife of Pakistan’s former prime minister Imran Khan on Tuesday called for his immediate release, citing “serious and concerning” reports about his treatment in prison.
Jemima Goldsmith said the Pakistani authorities had stopped all visits to him by his family and lawyers, postponed court hearings, and prevented him from calling his two sons since early September.
Electricity had been cut to his cell and he was no longer allowed out at any time, while the jail cook had been sent on leave, she wrote in a lengthy post on social media platform X.
“He is now completely isolated, in solitary confinement, literally in the dark, with no contact with the outside world,” said Goldsmith, who was married to the former Pakistan cricket team captain from 1995 to 2004.
The couple have two sons, Sulaiman and Kasim, who live in London.
A panel of UN experts in July criticized Pakistan for arbitrarily detaining Khan in breach of international law to apparently prevent him for running for political office.
Khan, 72, was prime minister of Pakistan from 2018 to 2022, and has been embroiled in more than 200 legal cases since he was ousted in a parliamentary no-confidence vote he claims was orchestrated by the country’s powerful generals.
He has been detained since August last year and barred from standing for office. He has since applied to become the next chancellor of Britain’s Oxford University.
Goldsmith said Khan’s family had also been targeted, and his sisters and nephew arrested and jailed unlawfully, while she had faced rape and death threats from her ex-husband’s political opponents.
The release of Khan, his nephew and sisters, plus the re-establishment of contact with his sons will provide “assurance first-hand that he is well and not being mistreated,” she added.
“I disagree with IK on many political issues,” she wrote. “But this is not about politics — it’s about my children’s father, his human rights & international law.”
Jemima Goldsmith says concerned about welfare of ex-husband Imran Khan
https://arab.news/27zd6
Jemima Goldsmith says concerned about welfare of ex-husband Imran Khan
- Khan has been embroiled in more than 200 legal cases since he was ousted in a no-trust vote in 2022
- The former prime minister has been detained since August last year and barred from standing for office
Pakistan seeks UK action over ‘incitement to violence’ against top military commander
- Move follows a video that purportedly showed a PTI supporter in Bradford referencing violence against the army chief
- Pakistan’s deputy interior minister says the government has written to the UK, saying the content breaches British law
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s State Minister for Interior Tallal Chaudhry said on Friday the government has written a letter to the United Kingdom to express concern over social media content circulating from British territory, which he said amounts to incitement to violence against the Pakistani state.
Speaking to a local news channel, Chaudhry said the government raised the issue after a video clip on social media purportedly showed a protester of former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party criticizing Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir and referring to violence against him.
“This is not a political matter, nor is it a question of freedom of expression,” the minister said while speaking to Geo TV. “This is clearly a violation of international law and of Britain’s own laws, including the British Terrorism Act 2006.”
He said the material went beyond political dissent and amounted to incitement to violence, adding that Pakistan had conveyed to British authorities that states are responsible for ensuring that individuals residing on their territory — whether citizens, asylum seekers or others — do not incite rebellion or violence against another sovereign country.
“What is very dangerous is that a very specific act — a car bombing — has been referenced,” he continued. “It has not been generalized.”
A social media post by a Britain-based journalist claimed that the video was recorded during a protest outside Pakistan’s consulate in Bradford, though neither the authenticity of the footage nor the identity of the individual could be independently verified.
Chaudhry said Pakistan’s complaint to the UK was lodged under international law, British law and United Nations principles governing relations between states, stressing that the issue was one of incitement rather than protected speech.
“This is not about freedom of expression. This is about incitement and terrorism, which is against Britain’s own laws,” he said, adding that Islamabad expects British authorities to take action.
Pakistani officials have also previously voiced concerns over social media activity by PTI supporters abroad that they say fuels unrest and hostility toward state institutions.
British authorities have not publicly responded to the letter or Chaudhry’s statement.
PTI has not reacted to either of them as well.
