Imran's sons demand father's release in first public appearance

Imran's sons demand father's release in first public appearance

Pakistan

This is the first time the two have publicly talked about their father’s incarceration

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(Web Desk) - In a first public appearance, incarcerated prime minister Imran Khan’s sons Sulaiman Isa Khan and Kasim Khan went online in an interview with X influencer Mario Nawfal where the two talked about the imprisonment of their father. 

Imran, imprisoned since August 2023, is serving a sentence at the Adiala Jail in the £190 million corruption case and also faces pending trials under the Anti-Terrorism Act related to the May 9, 2023, protests. 

This is the first time the two have publicly talked about their father’s incarceration. They were allowed by a court in November 2023 to contact him every week, but these talks, according to them, have not always been facilitated.

“We’ve gone through the legal routes. We’ve gone through every route that we thought would potentially get him out. We never thought he would be in there a fraction of how long he’s been in there. And it’s only getting worse. And, so, we’ve somewhat run out of those options. And now we’ve decided the only route of taking action is to come and speak publicly,” Kasim said.

He went on to say: “What we want is international pressure on Pakistan right now, because currently he’s living in inhuman conditions. They’re not giving him basic human rights … They’re not really doing anywhere near enough. And what we want is global pressure.”

Speaking on getting no relief from the legal channels, Sulaiman said: “We’ve exhausted other options [and] legal avenues and it’s gone very quiet. It seems, in the international media, it seems to have gone very quiet.” 

Asked if they would consider getting international support for their father, they said: “We’d love to speak to Trump or try and figure out a way where he would be able to help out in some way. Because, at the end of the day, all we’re trying to do is free our father, bring democracy in Pakistan and just ensure his basic human rights.”

They further said that they spoke to their father only once every two or three months.

The brothers ruled out any possibility to participate in politics, adding that they had taken permission from their father before giving the interview.