Jailed Imran Khan uses AI video to claim victory in Pakistan election – as army chief says nation needs ‘stable hands’
Jailed former prime minister of Pakistan Imran Khan has claimed victory for his supporters in the country’s general election – via a video generated using artificial intelligence (AI).
The clip of the former cricket star was uploaded on social media on Friday just hours after his rival Nawaz Sharif also claimed to have won despite vote counting continuing.
Many candidates from Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) were forced to stand as independents in the election after an alleged crackdown which saw senior party figures jailed and their campaigning activities restricted.
In the video, Khan is heard telling independent candidates to celebrate their win, while he also rejects Sharif’s declaration of victory.
“You have laid the foundation for your genuine freedom by voting yesterday,” he is heard saying. Sharif is also referred to as a “dishonourable man” for claiming victory.
With nearly 90% of the results in on Friday night, independent candidates backed by Khan’s PTI party had won 95 seats, while Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League (PML) had secured 66 seats.
A total of 169 seats are required for a majority in the 336-seat assembly. Some 265 seats were up for grabs in Thursday’s poll.
It comes as Pakistan’s army chief General Syed Asim Munir congratulated the country for the “successful conduct” of its election, saying the nation needed “stable hands” to move on from the politics of “anarchy and polarisation”.
He said in a statement: “Elections are not a zero-sum competition of winning and losing but an exercise to determine the mandate of the people.
“Political leadership and their workers should rise above self-interests and synergise efforts in governing and serving the people which is perhaps the only way to make democracy functional and purposeful.
“As the people of Pakistan have reposed their combined trust in the Constitution of Pakistan, it is now incumbent upon all political parties to reciprocate the same with political maturity and unity.”
General Syed Asim Munir. Pic: AP
The EU, UK and US have all cast doubt over the integrity of the vote, urging a probe into reported irregularities.
Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron said there were “serious concerns” about the “fairness and lack of inclusivity of the elections” amid accusations of military interference and vote-rigging.
In a statement on Friday night, he added: “We regret that not all parties were formally permitted to contest the elections and that legal processes were used to prevent some political leaders from participation”.
During the election campaign, police blocked the PTI from holding rallies and opening offices, while the party was also banned from using its symbol – a cricket bat – to help illiterate voters find it on ballot papers.
Khan and other senior PTI figures were also jailed on what they claim were politically-motivated charges.
Read more: Pakistan election: A prisoner, a kingmaker and an unexpected return
‘We don’t have enough of a majority’
After declaring victory on Friday, Sharif told reporters his younger brother, fellow former leader Shehbaz Sharif, would hold talks with other party leaders to discuss a way forward – just a day after he rejected the idea of joining forces with any of his rivals.
He admitted: “We don’t have enough of a majority to form a government without the support of others and we invite allies to join the coalition so we can make joint efforts to pull Pakistan out of its problems.”
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Sky’s Cordelia Lynch has the latest as the results in the Pakistan elections come in
The former prime minister also urged victorious independent candidates to enter his potential coalition.
“I don’t want to fight with those who are in the mood for fighting,” he said. “We will have to sit together to settle all matters.”
He said the meetings would include talks with Asif Ali Zardari, the husband of assassinated ex-Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto and father of Bilawal Bhutto Zardari of the Pakistan People’s Party – which is in third place so far with 51 seats.
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Polling officers count ballots in Karachi.
Pic: Reuters
‘Interference in electoral process’
Sharif, who has been prime minister of Pakistan three times previously, returned to the country in October after four years of self-imposed exile, including time in London, to avoid serving several prison sentences.
But within weeks of his return, his convictions were overturned, leaving him free to seek a fourth term.
The election was held amid tight security, with thousands of troops deployed on the streets and at polling stations across the country.
Pakistan’s borders with Iran and Afghanistan were also temporarily closed as security was stepped up.
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‘Democracy in Pakistan is under scrutiny’
Police also said two people were killed and six were injured in the northwest district of Shangla after clashes broke out between Khan supporters and officers.
The US state department said the election had been carried out amid a backdrop of restrictions on freedom of expression and assembly.
Spokesperson Matthew Miller added: “We are concerned about allegations of interference in the electoral process.”
The European Union also called on authorities to ensure “a timely and full investigation” of all reported election irregularities.
A new aid system has opened its first distribution centres in Gaza, according to a US-backed organisation dealing with supplies.
The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) began its operations in the territory on Monday, following the resignation of its director, Jake Wood, over its independence.
Gaza’s 2.3m population has been pushed towards famine by Israel’s almost three-month blockade.
Boxes of aid to be distributed across Rafah. Pic: Reuters.
The GHF said lorryloads of food – it did not say how many – had been delivered to its hubs, and distribution to Palestinians had begun.
“More trucks with aid will be delivered tomorrow, with the flow of aid increasing each day,” it said in a statement.
The controversial group, backed by Israel and the United States, has been rejected by the United Nations and other aid groups.
Follow the latest developments in our live blog
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People line up for food in Gaza
UN agencies and major aid groups have refused to cooperate with the GHF.
They claim Israel is weaponising food, and the new distribution system will be ineffective and lead to further displacement of Palestinians.
They also argue the GHF will fail to meet local needs, and violates humanitarian principles that prohibit a warring party from controlling humanitarian assistance.
In the meantime, scores of Palestinians in Gaza, like Islam Abu Taima, have resorted to searching through rubbish to find food.
Palestinians are having to search through rubbish to find food
She found a small pile of cooked rice, scraps of bread, and a box with a few pieces of cheese inside it – which she said she will serve to her five children.
“We’re dying of hunger,” she told the Associated Press news agency.
“If we don’t eat, we’ll die.”
Islam Abu Taeima finds a piece of bread in a pile of rubbish in Gaza City. Pic: AP.
It is unclear how many of the GHF’s aid trucks will enter Gaza.
It claims it will reach one million Palestinians by the end of the week.
There are questions, however, over who is funding it and how it will work.
Trucks transporting aid for Palestinians in Rafah. Pic: Reuters.
It has been set up as part of an Israeli plan – rather than a UN distribution effort.
Israel, which suggested a similar plan earlier this year, has said it will not be involved in distributing the aid but supported the plan and would provide security.
It says aid deliveries into Gaza are taken by Hamas instead of going to civilians.
Aid groups, however, say there is no evidence of this happening on a systemic basis.
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Israel began to allow a limited amount of food into Gaza last week – after a blockade that prevented food, medicine, fuel and other goods from entering the Palestinian enclave.
A letter has been signed by hundreds of judges and lawyers calling on the UK government to impose trade sanctions on Israel.
It also calls for Israeli ministers to be sanctioned and the suspension of Israel from the UN over “serious breaches of international law”.
“Genocide is being perpetrated in Gaza or that, at a minimum, there is a serious risk of genocide,” the letter says.
The Israeli government has repeatedly dismissed allegations of genocide in Gaza.
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At least 31 dead after school attack
More than 52,000 Palestinians have been killed since Israel launched its ground invasion of Gaza, according to the Hamas-run health ministry, following the deadly attacks by the militant group on Israel, which killed 1,200 people and saw around 250 people taken hostage.
The health ministry’s figures do not differentiate between civilians and fighters in Gaza.
King Charles and Queen Camilla are being urged to use their visit to Canada to seek an apology for the abuse of British children.
Campaigners have called on them to pursue an apology for the “dire circumstances” suffered by so-called “Home Children” over decades.
More than 100,000 were shipped from orphan homes in the UK to Canada between 1869 and 1948 with many used as cheap labour, typically as farm workers and domestic servants. Many were subject to mistreatment and abuse.
Canada has resisted calls to follow the UK and Australia in apologising for its involvement in child migrant schemes.
King Charles and Mark Carney on Monday. Pic: PA
Campaigners for the Home Children say the royal visit presents a “great opportunity” for a change of heart.
“I would ask that King Charles uses his trip to request an apology,” John Jefkins told Sky News.
John’s father Bert was one of 115,000 British Home Children transported to Canada, arriving in 1914 with his brother Reggie.
“It’s really important for the Home Children themselves and for their descendants,” John said.
“It’s something we deserve and it’s really important for the healing process, as well as building awareness of the experience of the Home Children.
“They were treated very, very badly by the Canadian government at the time. A lot of them were abused, they were treated horribly. They were second-class citizens, lepers in a way.”
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John Jefkins
John added: “I think the King’s visit provides a great opportunity to reinforce our campaign and to pursue an apology because we’re part of the Commonwealth and King Charles is a new Head of the Commonwealth meeting a new Canadian prime minister. It’s a chance, for both, to look at the situation with a fresh eye.
“There’s much about this visit that looks on our sovereignty and who we are as Canadians, rightly so.
“I think it’s also right that in contemplating the country we built, we focus on the people who built it, many in the most trying of circumstances.”
The issue was addressed by the then Prince of Wales during a tour of Canada in May 2022. He said at the time: “We must find new ways to come to terms with the darker and more difficult aspects of the past.”
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King Charles and Queen Camilla are on a two-day visit to Canada.
On Tuesday, the King will deliver the Speech from the Throne to open the 45th session of Canada’s parliament.
Camilla was made Patron of Barnardo’s in 2016. The organisation sent tens of thousands of Home Children to Canada. She took on the role, having served as president since 2007.
Buckingham Palace has been contacted for comment.
A spokesperson for the Canadian government said: “The government of Canada is committed to keeping the memory of the British Home Children alive.
“Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada deeply regrets this unjust and discriminatory policy, which was in place from 1869 to 1948. Such an approach would have no place in modern Canada, and we must learn from past mistakes.”
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