Pakistan former premier Imran Khan held after court hands down 3-year sentence
Police arrested Pakistan's former Prime Minister Imran Khan in Lahore on Saturday (Aug 5) after a court sentenced him to three years in prison for illegally selling state gifts, potentially barring the opposition leader from contesting an upcoming election.
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Transcript
00:00 A police convoy carried Pakistan's former Prime Minister Imran Khan from his home in
00:05 Lahore on Saturday. That's according to a video released by his party PTI. He was arrested
00:11 after a court sentenced him to three years in prison for illegally selling state gifts.
00:16 "As long as this message reaches you," Khan's denied wrongdoing. And in this pre-recorded
00:21 video address also released by his party, he asked his supporters to peacefully protest.
00:26 "I have only one appeal," he said. "Don't sit silently at home. I am struggling for
00:31 you and the country," he added.
00:34 The arrest potentially bars the opposition leader from contesting an upcoming election.
00:39 70-year-old Khan is a former cricket star who went on to forge a political career and
00:44 who was prime minister from 2018 to 2022.
00:49 Legal experts say the guilty verdict could eliminate Prime Minister Shabaz Sharif's greatest
00:53 rival in a national election expected to be held in November.
00:57 The arrest is the latest in a series of blows that have weakened Khan's political standing
01:02 after he fell out with Pakistan's powerful military and his party splintered.
01:07 Police surrounded Khan's residence in Lahore but there were no immediate signs of unrest
01:11 in the hours after his arrest, unlike last May. Khan's political party said in a statement
01:16 it had already filed another appeal to the Supreme Court earlier on Saturday.
01:21 "Lawyers for one of the main parties in Pakistan's ruling coalition cheered as the court handed
01:28 down the sentence. The conviction came a day after Pakistan's high court temporarily halted
01:34 the district court trial. It was not immediately clear why the trial had proceeded despite
01:39 the high court decision. The country's information minister said that Khan's arrest followed
01:44 a full investigation and proper legal proceedings in a trial court.
01:48 "
01:49 "The Supreme Court has ruled that the case is closed. The court has ruled that the case
01:50 is closed. The court has ruled that the case is closed. The court has ruled that the case
01:51 is closed. The court has ruled that the case is closed. The court has ruled that the case
01:52 is closed. The court has ruled that the case is closed. The court has ruled that the case
01:53 is closed. The court has ruled that the case is closed. The court has ruled that the case
01:54 is closed. The court has ruled that the case is closed. The court has ruled that the case
01:55 is closed. The court has ruled that the case is closed. The court has ruled that the case
01:56 is closed. The court has ruled that the case is closed. The court has ruled that the case
01:57 is closed. The court has ruled that the case is closed. The court has ruled that the case