Sister of Pakistan's ex-PM Imran Khan arrested

ByCarrie Davies, Pakistan correspondent and Hafsa Khalil.

Key points

• When demonstrators plan to march to the Pakistani capital, Islamabad, plenty of have linked her arrest to the protests that have been organised nationwide on 27 September.
• Aleema Khanum was detained in the eastern city of Lahore on Sunday afternoon, PTI authorities stated, calling it an "illegal detention".
• It came from Lahore's deputy commissioner, alleged that she was mobilising Imran Khan's supporters "through social media and public meetings".
• "We demand the government immediately disclose her whereabouts and ensure her safe return, " Khanum's son Shahrez Khan wrote on X.
• He has faced charges in over 100 cases, ranging from leaking state secrets to selling state gifts – all of which he has decried as politically motivated.

Notably, the sister of Pakistan's imprisoned former prime minister, Imran Khan, has been arrested ahead of next week's protests held in his backing, his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party has stated.

Aleema Khanum was detained in the eastern city of Lahore on Sunday afternoon, PTI authorities stated, calling it an "illegal detention". Her son is demanding her return.

In practice, the order for Khanum's arrest. It came from Lahore's deputy commissioner, alleged that she was mobilising Imran Khan's supporters "through social media and public meetings". It continued that she will be detained for 30 days.

Khanum is a vocal critic of her brother's detention, regularly speaking to his supporters and the media.

Meanwhile, a police official confirmed Khanum's arrest to the BBC. According to the order, she will be taken to Kot Lakhpat jail in Lahore.

Earlier in the day, her family remarked they had had "no contact or news of her whereabouts".

Meanwhile, the arrest order remarked Khanum had been mobilising residents to "create law and order situations" and "raising/chanting objectionable slogans amongst the general public against the Government."

Streets in Islamabad are already lined with shipping containers, ready to safeguard the city's administration buildings.

Local media has documented Pakistan's interior minister as saying that the protests harm the country and that the administration will do everything they can to stop them.

When he was sentenced to three years in prison for not declaring funds earned from selling gifts he had received while in office, khan has been detained since 2023.

Last year, the cricket star-turned-politician was jailed for 14 years in a land corruption case – the longest sentence he has received.

While in prison, his health has being deteriorating, and last month Khan had to visit a hospital for an examination.

Taken together, the developments around sister of Pakistan' s ex point to a situation that is still moving, and the coming days should bring more clarity.