A Pakistani court yesterday said it was unable to lift a travel ban on former Pakistani military ruler Pervez Musharraf, a day before his trial for treason was due to start.
Musharraf’s lawyer petitioned the Sindh High Court last month to remove the retired general’s name from an “exit control list” (ECL) so he could leave the country to visit his sick mother in Dubai.
The 70-year-old has faced a range of criminal cases since returning from self-imposed exile in March, but there have been rumors a deal would be struck to let him leave the country, to avoid the all-powerful military being embarrassed by having its former chief tried by civilians.
Musharraf lawyer A.Q.Hallipota said the Sindh court in Karachi had ruled that as the government imposed the travel ban, it must decide on whether to lift it.
“A two-member bench of the Sindh High Court has ruled that it did not put Musharraf’s name on the ECL,” A.Q.Halipota said.
He said the court asked the petitioner to contact the appropriate forum — the government.
Musharraf has faced criminal cases dating back to his 1999-2008 rule since returning to Pakistan, including the murder of former Pakistani prime minister Benazir Bhutto.
He was granted bail in the four main cases against him, but remains under guard at his farmhouse on the edge of Islamabad because of threats by Taliban insurgents to his life.
Last month the government announced it would put him on trial for treason and he has been ordered to appear before a special court today.
It will be the first time in Pakistan’s history that a former military ruler is to face a treason trial.
Speaking publicly last week for the first time since being put under house arrest in April, Musharraf vowed to face justice and not flee the country.
London lawyers for Musharraf on Friday slammed the treason trial as politically motivated and urged the UN to intervene.
Nearly half of China’s major cities are suffering “moderate to severe” levels of subsidence, putting millions of people at risk of flooding, especially as sea levels rise, according to a study of nationwide satellite data released yesterday. The authors of the paper, published by the journal Science, found that 45 percent of China’s urban land was sinking faster than 3mm per year, with 16 percent at more than 10mm per year, driven not only by declining water tables, but also the sheer weight of the built environment. With China’s urban population already in excess of 900 million people, “even a small portion
UNSETTLING IMAGES: The scene took place in front of TV crews covering the Trump trial, with a CNN anchor calling it an ‘emotional and unbelievably disturbing moment’ A man who doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire outside the courthouse where former US president Donald Trump is on trial has died, police said yesterday. The New York City Police Department (NYPD) said the man was declared dead by staff at an area hospital. The man was in Collect Pond Park at about 1:30pm on Friday when he took out pamphlets espousing conspiracy theories, tossed them around, then doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire, officials and witnesses said. A large number of police officers were nearby when it happened. Some officers and bystanders rushed
HYPOCRISY? The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday asked whether Biden was talking about China or the US when he used the word ‘xenophobic’ US President Joe Biden on Wednesday called for a hike in steel tariffs on China, accusing Beijing of cheating as he spoke at a campaign event in Pennsylvania. Biden accused China of xenophobia, too, in a speech to union members in Pittsburgh. “They’re not competing, they’re cheating. They’re cheating and we’ve seen the damage here in America,” Biden said. Chinese steel companies “don’t need to worry about making a profit because the Chinese government is subsidizing them so heavily,” he said. Biden said he had called for the US Trade Representative to triple the tariff rates for Chinese steel and aluminum if Beijing was
Beijing is continuing to commit genocide and crimes against humanity against Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in its western Xinjiang province, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a report published on Monday, ahead of his planned visit to China this week. The State Department’s annual human rights report, which documents abuses recorded all over the world during the previous calendar year, repeated language from previous years on the treatment of Muslims in Xinjiang, but the publication raises the issue ahead of delicate talks, including on the war in Ukraine and global trade, between the top U.S. diplomat and Chinese