التصنيف: أخبار

Pakistan’s former prime minister Imran Khan and his wife have been sentenced to seven years in prison on a charge that their 2018 marriage broke the country’s laws, officials and their defence lawyers have said.

The verdict follows another case in which Khan, who is also a cricket legend in the country, and his wife Bushra Bibi were sentenced to 14 years in prison on Wednesday after being convicted of corruption.

The developments come ahead of parliamentary elections on 8 February in Pakistan in which Khan has already been disqualified as part of his corruption conviction.

Intisar Panjutha, the couple’s lawyer, said the latest verdict was announced by Judge Qudrat Ullah a day after the trial ended.

The prosecution had argued Khan and his wife violated Pakistan’s law that a woman must wait three months before marrying again.

The guilty verdicts mark Khan’s fourth conviction since he was ousted from power in 2022.

Khan and his family insist all the charges and convictions are politically motivated.

His sentences will be served concurrently.

A day before he was handed a 14-year sentence in the corruption case, where he and Bibi were accused of retaining and selling state gifts when he was in power, Khan was jailed for 10 years for leaking state secrets.

The 71-year-old, the founder of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, was earlier jailed for three years in August 2023 on corruption charges.

‘This is a bogus case’

The latest ruling was condemned by the Tehreek-e-Insaf party.

Gohar Khan, the head of the party, told reporters that Khan will appeal.

“This is a bogus case against Imran Khan and Bushra Bibi, but still they were given the maximum prison sentence by the court,” he said.

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Bibi, Khan’s third wife, was a spiritual healer who was previously married to a man who had claimed that they divorced in November 2017, less than three months before she married Khan.

Bibi has said their divorce was in August 2017.

Khan and Bibi repeatedly denied during the trial that they violated the three-month waiting period.

The couple were also fined 500,000 rupees (£1,417) each after being convicted in the case.

Fears of riots again after latest decision

Khan, who was previously married to British journalist Jemima Goldsmith and British-Pakistani journalist Reham Khan, is currently serving multiple prison terms at Adiala prison in the garrison city of Rawalpindi.

His trials were held there due to security concerns.

Khan has also been embroiled in more than 150 cases, which include inciting people to violence after his arrest in May 2023.

During nationwide riots that month, Khan’s supporters attacked the military headquarters in Rawalpindi, stormed an air base in Mianwali in the eastern Punjab province and torched a building housing state-run Radio Pakistan in the northwest.

The violence subsided only when Khan was released at the time by the Supreme Court.

Khan and Bibi also face another corruption case allegedly involving giving undue benefits to a property tycoon in return for establishing an Islamic university.

غزة – وكالات:

قالت وزارة الصحة في غزة إن عدد القتلى والجرحى والمفقودين الفلسطينيين جراء الهجمات الإسرائيلية على قطاع غزة من السابع من أكتوبر الماضي يقترب من الـ100 ألف، فيما بدأت حركة حماس تستعيد بعض أنشطتها في مدينة غزة، بعد انسحاب القوات الإسرائيلية منها.

وقالت وزارة الصحة الفلسطينية في غزة، في بيان، إن 27238 فلسطينياً على الأقل قُتلوا وأصيب 66452 آخرون في الغارات الإسرائيلية على قطاع غزة منذ 7 أكتوبر، عدا المفقودين والضحايا تحت الركام وفي الطرقات الذين تمنع القوات الإسرائيلية وصول طواقم الإسعاف والدفاع المدني إليهم.

Pressure is mounting on European broadcasters to boycott Israel’s participation in the Eurovision Song Contest because of the war in Gaza.

More than 27,000 people have been killed in Israeli military action, and over 66,000 have been injured since the conflict began, according to Gaza‘s Hamas-led health ministry. Israel retaliated after Hamas fighters killed more than 1,000 Israelis and took hundreds of hostages in attacks on 7 October last year.

It’s the second time politics has dominated Eurovision, after Russia was expelled from the 2022 contest over its invasion of Ukraine. Ukraine went on to win the competition.

Iceland is among the countries considering whether to participate this year. It has said it will decide whether or not to take part only once its representative is chosen, with the process kicking off tonight.

The Icelandic Broadcasting Authority, RUV, shared a message on its website, saying: “No decision will be made regarding Iceland’s participation in Eurovision until after the contest, and after consultation with the winner.

“The reason is the criticism that has arisen regarding Israel‘s participation in the contest, despite the war in Gaza.”

Iceland’s televised selection process, featuring 10 songs and artists, takes one month, with the results announced on 2 March. One of the contestants, Bashar Murad, is Palestinian.

Meanwhile, in Sweden more than 1,000 musicians – including Dancing On My Own singer Robyn – have written an open letter to the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) which organises Eurovision and SVT, which is the country’s host broadcaster, accusing them of “double standards”.

Flagging Russia’s earlier exclusion from the competition, the Swedish musicians said it was their “duty” as cultural practitioners to “bring about change and counter artwashing”.

The letter concluded: “Allowing Israel’s participation undermines not only the spirit of the competition but the entire public service mission. It also sends the signal that governments can commit war crimes without consequences. Therefore, we appeal to the EBU: Exclude Israel from the Eurovision Song Contest 2024.”

Over 1,500 artists in Finland have also urged their public broadcaster, Yle, to join the calls on the EBU to exclude Israel, calling it “a country that commits war crimes”.

The Finnish artists added that a country which “continues a military occupation” should not get “a public stage to polish its image in the name of music”.

Irish broadcaster RTE has also received a petition signed by more than 500 people setting out similar demands.

In Norway last month, semi-naked protesters knelt in the snow in front of the country’s public broadcaster NRK to also demand Israel’s exclusion from Eurovision.

And in Spain, the leader of the left-wing party Podemos, Ione Belarra, has called on the Spanish Congress to debate the removal of Israel from the competition as part of “a pressure tactic to halt the genocide against Palestinian people”.

She has registered a non-legal proposal to request the debate, which if approved would urge the Spanish government to “position itself clearly against Israel’s participation in the Eurovision Song Contest”.

The EBU, which is a member-led organisation, headed by an executive board, says Eurovision is a non-political event.

It adds that Israel’s public broadcaster, KAN, “meets all the competition rules and can participate in the contest next year”.

The EBU has also said Russia’s ban resulted from “persistent breaches of membership obligations and the violation of public service media values” by Russian broadcasters. Its relationship with KAN is “fundamentally different”, the EBU added.

Olly Alexander, of music act Years & Years, will represent the UK in this year’s competition.

Alexander has also taken a public stance against Israel, and signed an open letter from LGBTQ+ activist group Voices4London, which called for a ceasefire in Gaza and for Israel to allow aid into the area.

Noa Kirel, a former Israel Defence Forces soldier, represented Israel at Eurovision in Liverpool in 2023, finishing in fourth place.

This year’s competition will be held in Malmo, Sweden, after Loreen won the competition for a second time. The final will be held on 11 May.

The White Lotus has dropped actor Milos Bikovic, after Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs accused him of supporting the Russian invasion.

The Serbia-born star, 36, is understood to have been cast as a Russian yoga-loving, life enhancement mentor at the hotel in which the third series is set.

His casting was initially announced by HBO on 12 January.

HBO, which makes the hit series, confirmed it had decided to part ways with the actor and would be re-casting the role, in a story first published by Deadline.

The move follows a social media post shared by Ukraine’s foreign ministry on 24 January which directly tagged the TV network and asked: “HBO, is it all right for you to work with a person who supports genocide & violates international law?”

The post contained a short video, with clips of statements apparently made by Bikovic about Ukraine and the annexation of Crimea, along with clips from past seasons of The White Lotus.

While there is no public evidence of Bikovic supporting the invasion of Ukraine, he has not publicly condemned it.

Bikovic has worked in Russia for the past decade and is one of the country’s most popular actors.

He received an award from Vladimir Putin in 2018 and became a Russian citizen in 2021.

In 2019, he revealed that he had been banned from Ukraine for national security reasons.

Responding to his removal from the show, Bikovic said it was the result of “a targeted campaign”, warning that it sets “a disturbing precedent shadowing the essence of artistic freedom”.

He wrote on Instagram: “I was honoured to be chosen to be a part of White Lotus, a TV series that I hold in high regard and with colleagues whom I deeply respect.

However, my participation is not possible due to reasons beyond the realm of art and I will not bow to any narrative that seeks to compromise my integrity.

“I would like to thank everyone who stood by me. I wish my colleagues great success in creating the next season.”

Alluding to the claims made against him, he called each conflict in the world “heartbreaking,” saying he wished “for all of them to stop”.

He also drew parallels with his childhood in war-torn Serbia, writing: “At the age of 11, I endured days and nights in shelters while my homeland and my hometown were bombed,” adding, “I could never wish such devastation on anyone”.

Series three of The White Lotus, the first two series of which were shown on Sky Atlantic, is due to start filming in Thailand later this month and is due to air in 2025.

An Indian model who faked her own death to raise awareness of cervical cancer has defended her actions, saying the publicity stunt was “necessary”.

Poonam Pandey, 32, shot to fame in 2011 when she promised to strip for the Indian cricket team if they won the World Cup. She has since appeared in Bollywood films and reality TV shows.

A statement announcing her death was posted on her Instagram page on Friday.

Her 1.3 million followers were told: “This morning is a tough one for us. Deeply saddened to inform you that we have lost our beloved Poonam to cervical cancer.

“Every living form that ever came in contact with her was met with pure love and kindness.”

Ms Pandey’s management team also confirmed her death to media outlets, while colleagues and co-stars posted tributes on social media.

But some were sceptical, pointing to footage posted on the social media site four days earlier showing Ms Pandey enjoying a night-time boat ride in Goa.

She then said in a video posted on Saturday that she had not died and apologised to her fans for shocking them.

“Yes, I faked my demise. Extreme, I know. But suddenly we all are talking about cervical cancer, aren’t we?” Pandey said. “I am proud of what my death news has been able to achieve.”

“Unlike some other cancers, cervical cancer is entirely preventable. The key lies in the HPV vaccine and early detection tests. We have the means to ensure no one loses their life to this disease.

“Let’s empower one another with critical awareness and ensure every woman is informed about the steps to take.”

She then urged her followers to “bring #DeathToCervicalCancer”.

In a later post defending her actions, she said: “Feel free to express your frustration – I understand. But this is not just lip service, instead I’m committing my entire body to the service of cervical cancer.

“Once you’ve portrayed your sentiments, I invite you to visit www.poonampandeyisalive.com, my gift to you, where we can come together to combat cervical cancer.”