Pakistan's Imran Khan to face death sentence in trial over state secrets?

A Pakistani court indicted country's former prime minister Imran Khan on charges related to revealing official secrets after his 2022 ouster from office. Imran Khan could now face a possible death sentence and will likely be unable to run in parliamentary elections in January as he and close aide Shah Mahmood Qureshi will go on trial this week. The charge carries a sentence ranging from life in prison to the death penalty, according to Umair Niazi, one of Imran Khan's lawyers.

Both Imran Khan and Shah Mahmood Qureshi have denied the charges against them. The hearings will take place before a special court behind closed doors at the Adiyala Prison where Imran Khan is being held.

What is the case against Imran Khan about?

The case is related to Imran Khan's speech and waiving of a confidential diplomatic letter at a rally after his ouster in a no-confidence vote in parliament in 2022. The document — called Cipher — has not been made public by either the government or Imran Khan’s lawyers. It was apparently diplomatic correspondence between the Pakistani ambassador to Washington and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Islamabad.

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At the time, Imran held up the alleged letter and claimed that it was proof that he was being threatened and that his ouster was a US conspiracy. Washington has denied the claim.

What about the other cases Imran Khan is facing?

Imran Khan is facing more than 150 cases, including on charges from contempt of court to terrorism and inciting violence. He was sentenced to three years for corruption in early August. After this, an Islamabad High Court suspended that sentence but he was re-arrested later in August in the Cipher case.

For now, Imran Khan is not be eligible to run for office in the January elections. Imran Khan's lawyer said that his client is being denied a fair trial.

Nawaz Sharif is back

Imran Khan's main political rival and former premier Nawaz Sharif returned to Pakistan, ending his four years of self-imposed exile in London. He addressed a large homecoming rally in Lahore declaring that he forgives all those who caused him hardship.

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