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Pakistan Arrests Opposition Leader for Exposing Official Secrets, Harming National Interest

Former Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi (archive)
Former Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi (archive)
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Pakistan Arrests Opposition Leader for Exposing Official Secrets, Harming National Interest

Former Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi (archive)
Former Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi (archive)

Pakistan’s top investigation agency has arrested an opposition leader, who is a close aide of convicted former Prime Minister Imran Khan, for exposing official secrets and harming state interests, according to case documents revealed Sunday.
It’s the latest development in a standoff between the administration of outgoing Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and his predecessor Khan, who was jailed earlier this month on graft charges, The Associated Press said.
Shah Mahmood Qureshi was arrested Saturday night at his Islamabad home by the Federal Investigation Agency on charges of exposing a letter last year to claim that Khan was ousted from power by the US.
The letter has not been made public but was apparently diplomatic correspondence between a Pakistani ambassador to Washington and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Islamabad.
Cricketing hero Khan was booted out of parliament in April 2022 in a no-confidence vote. He insists his removal was engineered by Washington, Sharif's government and the military. All three deny the allegation.
Case documents about Qureshi’s arrest said he, Khan and others are involved in the communication of information in a secret classified letter to unauthorized people by “twisting the facts to achieve their ulterior motives and personal gains.”
The documents allege they conspired to misuse the contents of the letter to accomplish their “nefarious designs.”
Nobody from the Federal Investigation Agency was immediately available for comment.
Qureshi was arrested hours after he held a press conference Saturday evening demanding a level playing field for Khan's party, alleging that thousands of supporters are behind bars. He said the party will challenge any possible delay to elections, due to be held later this year.
Khan, who is serving a three-year term in a high security prison in eastern Punjab province, has also been arrested in the case, known locally as Cypher. Qureshi is standing in for Khan as leader of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party, or PTI.
Sharif accused Khan of exposing an official secret document in an incident last year when he waved a confidential diplomatic letter at a rally.
Khan has more than 150 legal cases against him, including several on charges of corruption, “terrorism” and inciting people to violence over protests in May that saw his followers attack government and military property across the country.
Authorities have moved to rein in the outspoken politician’s supporters and allies since May, detaining thousands of Khan’s followers for their alleged involvement in the turmoil.

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Strong Earthquake Kills at Least 126 People in Tibet

In this photo released by Xinhua News Agency, rescue workers search for survivors in the aftermath of an earthquake in Changsuo Township of Dingri in Xigaze, southwestern China's Tibet Autonomous Region on Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025. (Xinhua via AP)
In this photo released by Xinhua News Agency, rescue workers search for survivors in the aftermath of an earthquake in Changsuo Township of Dingri in Xigaze, southwestern China's Tibet Autonomous Region on Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025. (Xinhua via AP)
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Strong Earthquake Kills at Least 126 People in Tibet

In this photo released by Xinhua News Agency, rescue workers search for survivors in the aftermath of an earthquake in Changsuo Township of Dingri in Xigaze, southwestern China's Tibet Autonomous Region on Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025. (Xinhua via AP)
In this photo released by Xinhua News Agency, rescue workers search for survivors in the aftermath of an earthquake in Changsuo Township of Dingri in Xigaze, southwestern China's Tibet Autonomous Region on Tuesday, Jan. 7, 2025. (Xinhua via AP)

 A strong earthquake shook a high-altitude region of western China and areas of Nepal on Tuesday, damaging hundreds of houses, littering streets with rubble and killing at least 126 people in Tibet. Many others were trapped as dozens of aftershocks shook the remote region.
Rescue workers climbed mounds of broken bricks, some using ladders in heavily damaged villages, as they searched for survivors. Videos posted by China's Ministry of Emergency Management showed two people being carried on stretchers by workers treading over the debris from collapsed homes.
At least 188 people were injured in Tibet on the Chinese side of the border, the official Xinhua News Agency said.
More than 1,000 homes were damaged in the barren and sparsely populated region, state broadcaster CCTV reported. In video posted by the broadcaster, building debris littered streets and crushed cars.
According to The AP, people in northeastern Nepal strongly felt the earthquake, but there were no initial reports of injuries or damage, according to the country's National Emergency Operation Center. The area around Mount Everest, about 75 kilometers (50 miles) southwest of the epicenter, was empty in the depth of winter when even some residents move away to escape the cold.
The quake woke up residents in Nepal’s capital of Kathmandu — about 230 kilometers (140 miles) from the epicenter — and sent them running into the streets.
The US Geological Survey said the earthquake measured magnitude 7.1 and was relatively shallow at a depth of about 10 kilometers (6 miles). China's Earthquake Networks Center recorded the magnitude as 6.8. Shallow earthquakes often cause more damage.
The epicenter was in Tibet's Tingri county, where the India and Eurasia plates grind against each other and can cause earthquakes strong enough to change the heights of some of the world’s tallest peaks in the Himalayan mountains.
There have been 10 earthquakes of at least magnitude 6 in the area where Tuesday’s quake hit over the past century, the USGS said.
About 150 aftershocks were recorded in the nine hours after the earthquake, and the Mount Everest scenic area on the Chinese side was closed.
Chinese leader Xi Jinping called for all-out efforts to rescue people, minimize casualties and resettle those whose homes were damaged. More than 3,000 rescuers were deployed, CCTV said.
Vice Premier Zhang Guoqing was dispatched to the area to guide the work, and the government announced the allocation of 100 million yuan ($13.6 million) for disaster relief.
About 6,900 people live in three townships and 27 villages within 20 kilometers (12.5 miles) of the epicenter on the Chinese side, state media said. The average altitude in the area is about 4,200 meters (13,800 feet), the Chinese earthquake center said in a social media post.
On the southwest edge of Kathmandu, a video showed water spilling out into the street from a pond in a courtyard with a small temple.
“It is a big earthquake," a woman can be heard saying. "People are all shaking.”