Former Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan has been shot in the leg in what his supporters say was an assassination attempt.
A gunman opened fire while Mr Khan, 70, was giving a speech at a rally in Wazirabad in Punjab province on Thursday, wounding him and some of his supporters, officials said.
According to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Imran Ismail, Khan has been shot in the leg “three to four” times, Dawn reported.
Speaking to Bol TV, Ismail said that he was standing next to Khan when the shots were fired in which PTI leader Faisal Javed was also injured.
He added that the attacker was directly in front of the container and was wielding an AK-47, Dawn reported.
Sky’s Cordelia Lynch, who was at the scene, said a Sky News producer saw the injured politician emerge from his container truck.
“My cameraman Duncan Sharp and I were sitting inside the container Imran Khan was on top of, when we suddenly heard screams,” she said.
Mr Khan was rushed away from the scene to hospital and his supporters said he had survived the assassination attempt.
The former cricketer – who has been pushing for new elections after being ousted from power in April – has been delivering fiery speeches at gatherings across the country.
He was six days into a march from Lahore to Islamabad in his drive to bring early elections to the country, pushing for radical change, when the shooting took place.
Large crowds had gathered to hear him speak – and Lynch said she had just interviewed him about threats of violence – when there was a “sudden commotion”.
She said: “The door flew open and we were faced with a panicked-looking crowd. Some were shouting, “Imran Khan is dead”, others were asking: “Is he dead? Is he dead?
“Armed police started running towards us. Ambulances were screeching into the area. I saw one bloodied man carried into the ambulance and then another.”
“The injured were taken into an ambulance… a lot of panic… people rushing. No one could quite work out what was happening,” said Lynch.
“Then Imran Khan emerged. He had been shot, I understand, in the left leg.
“In fact, our producer here, Muhammad, was able to see that.
“Imran Khan was taken away… a doctor, who was close by, treated three patients.”
Faisal Javed, one of Mr Khan’s close aide’s and a senator, was among the injured.
“Imran Khan and Faisal Javed received bullets wounds. A bullet hit Imran Khan’s shin. Both have been taken to hospital for treatment,” said Fawad Chaudhry, a spokesman for Mr Khan’s political party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).
Mr Javed, who had blood stains on his clothes, told Geo TV from the hospital: “Several of our colleagues are wounded. We heard that one of them is dead.”
Officials said the gunman had been arrested at the scene.
Prime Minister Shebaz Sharif, Mr Khan’s successor, condemned the shooting and has ordered an immediate investigation.
No group has claimed responsibility for the shooting.
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Former Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan has been shot in the leg in what his supporters say was an assassination attempt.
A gunman opened fire while Mr Khan, 70, was giving a speech at a rally in Wazirabad in Punjab province on Thursday, wounding him and some of his supporters, officials said.
According to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Imran Ismail, Khan has been shot in the leg “three to four” times, Dawn reported.
Speaking to Bol TV, Ismail said that he was standing next to Khan when the shots were fired in which PTI leader Faisal Javed was also injured.
He added that the attacker was directly in front of the container and was wielding an AK-47, Dawn reported.
Sky’s Cordelia Lynch, who was at the scene, said a Sky News producer saw the injured politician emerge from his container truck.
“My cameraman Duncan Sharp and I were sitting inside the container Imran Khan was on top of, when we suddenly heard screams,” she said.
Mr Khan was rushed away from the scene to hospital and his supporters said he had survived the assassination attempt.
The former cricketer – who has been pushing for new elections after being ousted from power in April – has been delivering fiery speeches at gatherings across the country.
He was six days into a march from Lahore to Islamabad in his drive to bring early elections to the country, pushing for radical change, when the shooting took place.
Large crowds had gathered to hear him speak – and Lynch said she had just interviewed him about threats of violence – when there was a “sudden commotion”.
She said: “The door flew open and we were faced with a panicked-looking crowd. Some were shouting, “Imran Khan is dead”, others were asking: “Is he dead? Is he dead?
“Armed police started running towards us. Ambulances were screeching into the area. I saw one bloodied man carried into the ambulance and then another.”
“The injured were taken into an ambulance… a lot of panic… people rushing. No one could quite work out what was happening,” said Lynch.
“Then Imran Khan emerged. He had been shot, I understand, in the left leg.
“In fact, our producer here, Muhammad, was able to see that.
“Imran Khan was taken away… a doctor, who was close by, treated three patients.”
Faisal Javed, one of Mr Khan’s close aide’s and a senator, was among the injured.
“Imran Khan and Faisal Javed received bullets wounds. A bullet hit Imran Khan’s shin. Both have been taken to hospital for treatment,” said Fawad Chaudhry, a spokesman for Mr Khan’s political party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).
Mr Javed, who had blood stains on his clothes, told Geo TV from the hospital: “Several of our colleagues are wounded. We heard that one of them is dead.”
Officials said the gunman had been arrested at the scene.
Prime Minister Shebaz Sharif, Mr Khan’s successor, condemned the shooting and has ordered an immediate investigation.
No group has claimed responsibility for the shooting.
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