Imran Khan sentenced, Pakistan on edge

Former PM Imran Khan is bunking down in Pakistan’s notorious maximum security Attock prison after being found guilty of corruption. The court, which said he illegally concealed assets after selling state gifts, also banned the 70-year-old former cricket champ from running for office for five years. Khan may also lose the chairmanship of his party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf.

Khan denied the charges, claiming they were designed to prevent him from running for office in the next national election, which was scheduled for November but may now be delayed. Since being ousted in a 2022 no-confidence vote, Khan has remained Pakistan’s leading opposition figure, but his party has been severely weakened by the defection of dozens of key officials and the arrests of thousands of supporters.

Reaction from Islamabad to Washington. When Khan was arrested on unrelated charges in May 2023, clashes between demonstrators and police resulted in 12 injuries, one death, and the suspension of internet service. In anticipation of similar unrest, authorities imposed a seven-day ban on all public gatherings in several districts of Punjab and declared a high-security alert in Islamabad and Rawalpindi. But so far, despite Khan and PTI officials calling on supporters to peacefully protest, only scattered demonstrations have been reported.

Reaction from the US State Department was similarly muted, with Secretary of State Antony Blinken saying only that the US hopes “whatever happens in Pakistan is consistent with the rule of law, with the Constitution.”

What’s next? Khan’s lawyers plan to file an appeal, but if he remains barred from running, the next big test will be whether Khan’s PTI colleagues can mobilize the masses to vote in the next election.