Former Prime Minister Imran Khan of Pakistan was sentenced to 10 years in prison last January for leaking state secrets in what seen as a campaign by the military to remove him from power.

He served as Prime Minister of Pakistan from August 2018 until April 2022. He is the founder and former chairman of the political party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI). He was facing several criminal charges after being removed from power as Pakistan's Prime Minister and escaped several assassination attempts. Mr. Khan, who is the most popular politician in Pakistan, has faced dozens of charges from corruption to sedition since he was ousted after losing a confidence vote in March 2023.

Last March, 70-year-old Imran Khan, was sentenced to 10 years in jail. He was charged with leaking state secrets. Khan has consistently maintained that all charges against him are politically motivated. Even Pakistan's highest court ruled the trial was conducted illegally. Not to mention that prior to the conviction, the government made him a deal to leave Pakistan with his family for good in any country of his choice. Mr. Khan flatly rejected the deal out of hand and vow to fight to the bitter end. Obviously, the government did not have a solid case against him to begin with. 

Last August, The Intercept reported a story about which "the U.S. State Department encouraged the Pakistani government in a March 7, 2022, meeting to remove Imran Khan as prime minister over his neutrality on the Russian invasion of Ukraine," according to a classified Pakistani government document obtained by The Intercept.  Another clear indication of the Biden administration interfering in the internal affairs of a sovereign nation. 

So, basically Khan was punished for not dancing to the U.S. music by defying a US demand to support Ukraine against Russian's invasion. Imagine for a minute if Russia or China will attempt to overthrow Joe Biden for supporting the Israeli genocide in Gaza? I don't see any difference. 

Khan remains the most popular politician in his country, a nuclear power, and the fifth most populous nation on Earth. That being said, it looks like the government trumped up the charges against Mr. Khan and he was simply convicted on "Mickey Mouse charges."

I should note here that the US was unhappy with Pakistan's refusal to recognize the Apartheid state of Israel for all those years. Also, Pakistan forbids its nationals from visiting Israel and the Pakistani Airlines (PIA) does not allow travelers with Israeli passports aboard its aircrafts. This policy however does not apply to non-Israeli Jewish travelers.

As a brilliant speaker, Mr. Imran Khan eloquently said in defense of Palestine in his 2020 address to the UN General Assembly (UNGA) "Palestinians remain a festering wound." "A just and lasting settlement is indispensable for the Middle East and the world. Illegal annexations of Palestinian territories, the building of illegal settlements, and the imposing of inhumane living condition of the Palestinian people especially in Gaza cannot bring peace to a troubled region. Therefore, I am calling for a contiguous and independent Palestinian state with Al Quds Al Sharif as the capital." 

Since Pakistan's highest court ruled that Imran Khan's trial was conducted illegally, basic element of democracy require Imran Khan be free on mistrial.

Mahmoud El-Yousseph is a Palestinian freelance writer and retired USA veteran who lives in Westerville, Ohio. He could be reached at: elyousseph6@yahoo.com