CHARGED

Pakistan’s Jailed Ex-Leader Imran Khan Indicted Over Secret Cable Leak

Imran Khan has claimed the communication proves that the U.S. conspired to remove him from power.

Pakistan’s former prime minister Imran Khan and his deputy were indicted Monday over the publication of a classified diplomatic cable. Khan—who was removed from power in a confidence vote last year and was convicted in a corruption case in August—has denied that he was responsible for the cable being leaked to the media. The secret message was sent from Pakistan’s ambassador to Washington, D.C., to Islamabad last year. Khan has claimed that the cable shows the U.S. conspired with Pakistan’s military to remove him from power because he visited Moscow right before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in early 2022. Both the Pakistani military and the U.S. have denied his claims. Lawyers say he could face up to 14 years in prison or even a death sentence if convicted in the new case under the Official Secrets Act.