Former Pakistan Prime Minister, Imran Khan shot in political rally

Imran Khan, former Pakistan Prime Minister, got shot and sustain injury today when unidentified gunmen fired during a protest march in Pakistan. Shots were fired at the container-mounted truck carrying Imran Khan in Pakistan’s Punjab province. According to local media, Mr. Khan is out of danger.

To demand immediate elections, Imran Khan was leading a protest march to Islamabad. Gunshots were heard close to Imran Khan’s reception camp at Allahwala Chowk in Gujranwala, according to the local channel Geo News. There were reportedly a number of injuries.

The incident, which occurred about 200 kilometers from Islamabad, brought chilling memories of how Benazir Bhutto, a former prime minister, was fatally shot at a rally in 2007.

Meanwhile, Pak Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif Condemns Attack On Imran Khan

“I strongly condemn the firing at Imran Khan’s rally. An immediate report of the incident has been sought from the Interior Minister. We pray for the speedy recovery of Imran and other injured.

“The Federation will provide all possible support to the Punjab government in the security/investigation of the incident. Violence should have no place in national politics,” Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said.

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Imran Khan has been leading a march since Friday from the city of Lahore towards the capital, Islamabad, campaigning for fresh elections after being ousted from office in April.

Khan was wounded when shots were fired from the crowd near Gujranwala, his senior aide, Raoof Hasan, told AFP.

“This was an attempt to kill him, to assassinate him,” Hasan said, adding that one alleged attacker had been shot dead and a second was taken into police custody. In a tweet, Pakistan’s President Arif Alvi also called it “a heinous assassination attempt”.

“I thank Allah that he is safe but injured with few bullets in his leg & hopefully non-critical,” he tweeted.

Pakistan has been grappling with Islamist militants for decades, and politicians are frequently targeted by assassination attempts. In 2007 the nation’s first female leader Benazir Bhutto was slain in a suicide attack that still remains unsolved.

Each day during his so-called “long march” 70-year-old Khan has mounted a shipping container towed by a lorry, making speeches from the open top to crowds of thousands in cities and towns along the way.