Former Prime Minister Imran Khan Files Petition for Bail Amidst Cipher Case, as Pakistan Initiates Mass Deportations of Afghan Refugees and Saudi Arabia Seeks Investment in $7 Billion Copper Project

 Pakistan’s jailed former prime minister, Imran Khan, has filed a petition in the Supreme Court seeking bail in the cipher case. Khan was arrested in August after the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) filed a case against him for disclosing a secret diplomatic cable. A special court in Pakistan has indicted Khan and ex-foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi in the case. The petition was filed after the Islamabad High Court rejected Khan’s previous petitions for bail and the dismissal of the case. In the charge sheet, Khan is accused of misusing the contents of the cipher to build a narrative of a foreign conspiracy against his government, a charge denied by the US. Khan’s government was removed in 2022, and he has been facing numerous cases since then.

Meanwhile, Pakistan has started mass deportations of undocumented Afghans residing in the country illegally. This includes thousands of people who escaped the Taliban’s rule and are now at risk of persecution at home. The Pakistani government gave Afghan refugees in the country until November 1 to leave voluntarily or face arrest and forced deportation. Police have also warned landlords against renting homes to undocumented refugees. Videos shared on social media show bulldozers destroying Afghan refugees’ houses, causing despair among families.

The deportation order has put the most vulnerable people at risk, including women’s rights activists, musicians, and former government employees who worked under the US-backed government in Kabul. The American musician Lanny Cordola, who has been teaching and protecting Afghan street girls in Pakistan, said the deportation is a death sentence for them. The Taliban has banned music in Afghanistan and anyone associated with it, including girls, are at risk of severe punishment.

The United Nations has expressed concerns over the collective punishment of Afghan refugees and the violation of their rights. In other news, Saudi Arabia is reportedly in talks with Pakistan to buy part of the government’s stake in a $7 billion copper project jointly owned with Barrick Gold Corp. The discussions are ongoing, according to Barrick Gold Corp. Saudi Arabia’s interest in the project highlights a growing trend of Middle Eastern countries seeking to invest in mining projects to diversify their economies.