Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for leaking state secrets.
Special court Judge Abul Hasnat announced the punishment during a hearing held at the Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi.
Khan, who claimed the ordeal was politically motivated, was first jailed in August 2023 on corruption charges.
Syed Zulfiqar Bukhari, a spokesperson for Khan, called Tuesday's sentencing a “sham case with no access to media or public”.
Supporters of Imran Khan have descended on the streets
REUTERS
Pakistani police lobbed tear gas and detained a number of the cricket-star-turned-politician's supporters after tens of thousands descended on the streets ahead of his sentencing.
Some protests escalated into violence following a crackdown by police officers who claimed demonstrators had not received proper permission.
Khan, who is already serving a three-year prison sentence for corruption, has been barred from politics for five years by the Election Commission of Pakistan.
The 71-year-old won the 2018 poll in Pakistan by winning 149 seats and receiving 32 per cent of the vote.
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Former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan is barred from standing on February 8
REUTERS
Khan's party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf was banned from using its cricket bat symbol ahead of polls opening on February 8.
The incumbent caretaker administration also clamped down on the group's public gatherings and disqualified dozens of candidates.
The latest legal hearing also saw Khan's former Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi receive a decade-long jail sentence.
Khan was accused of sharing the contents of a secret cable sent by the country's ambassador in Washington to Islamabad.
Police have detained a number of Imran Khan's supporters
REUTERS
He also faces a number of other serious charges, including contempt of court and inciting violence.
The former Pakistan cricket captain, who was previously married to British journalist Jemima Goldsmith, was ousted as Prime Minister through a no-confidence vote in April 2022.
Khan is expected to challenge his hefty sentence in a higher court.
Pakistan's independent human rights commission is already warning there is little chance of free and fair parliamentary elections due to so-called pre-poll rigging.
