Arrest ordered of former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan

ISLAMABAD (AP) — A Pakistani court issued an arrest warrant for former prime minister Imran Khan on Tuesday, as the cricketer-turned-politician called on his supporters to continue protests amid a raging political crisis.

The court in Islamabad, the capital, which ordered the arrest, said Khan failed to attend a hearing to answer charges of selling state gifts and concealing his assets.

Judge Iqbal Zafar issued the order on a dramatic day when three other courts ruled that Khan had immunity from arrest on charges stemming from allegations of terrorism, the attempted assassination of a rival politician and of corruption.

Amid tight security, thousands of supporters greeted Imran Khan, 70, for his first appearance in Islamabad since being shot in the leg during a protest in November. In this attack, condemned throughout the country, a supporter of Khan was killed and three others injured.

Khan has for months led protests calling for snap elections to overthrow the government of Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif, which says elections will be held later this year when parliament completes its five-year term.

Fawad Chaudhry, a leader of Khan’s Tehreek-e-Insaf party, said there was ‘a grave threat to the safety of Imran Khan and thousands of others’ as they were transported through the capital . He added that Khan was taken from court to court to answer “bogus cases”.

Khan lost the premiership last April due to a vote of no confidence in the legislature. He accuses Sharif of conspiring with the United States to oust him from power, without presenting evidence.