&w=3840&q=100)
‘Stay strong': Trump aide meets Imran Khan's sons, takes a jibe at Pakistani establishment
Richard Grenell, a close aide of US President Donald Trump, met with the sons of jailed Pakistani leader Imran Khan in California
Richard Grenell, a key ally of US President Donald Trump, on Tuesday (July 22) met with the sons of jailed former prime minister of Pakistan Imran Khan in California.
Grenell, who served as Trump's special envoy and US ambassador to Germany, posted a photo with the brothers, Sulaiman Isa Khan and Kasim Khan, on social media.
Grenell wrote on X: 'Welcome to California, my friends. I loved hanging out with you today. Sulaiman and @Kasim_Khan1999, you must stay strong. There are millions of people around the world who are sick of political prosecutions. You are not alone.'
STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD
Welcome to California, my friends.
I loved hanging out with you today.
Sulaiman and @Kasim_Khan_1999, you must stay strong.
There are millions of people around the world who are sick of political prosecutions.
You are not alone. #freeimrankhan pic.twitter.com/TOAOjrEiM1 — Richard Grenell (@RichardGrenell) July 22, 2025
The meeting has spotlighted Khan's ongoing imprisonment, who has been detained since August 2023.
Human rights groups and Khan's party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), claim his detention is politically driven.
Concerns about Khan's conditions in Adiala Jail, Rawalpindi, are growing globally.
Reports indicate he is held in solitary confinement, cut off from newspapers, books, and television.
This isn't Grenell's first show of support for Khan.
Grenell previously backed Khan during Trump's 2024 campaign. On Newsmax, he praised Khan's leadership and criticised Pakistan's current government, saying, 'We had a much better relationship with Pakistan during the Trump administration when a guy named Imran Khan was the leader.'
He called Khan a 'political outsider with common-sense views.'
Grenell also compared Khan's legal battles in Pakistan to Trump's in the US, stating, 'He's currently in prison, facing many of the same allegations as President Trump,' and called for the former cricketer's release.
The meeting with Khan's sons is viewed as another clear sign of support from Trump's inner circle.
STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Indian Express
2 minutes ago
- Indian Express
State challenges Mumbai train blast acquittal, but appeals in key terror cases continue to face delays
The Maharashtra government recently announced its decision to challenge the Bombay High Court's acquittal of 12 men in the 2006 Mumbai train blasts case in the Supreme Court. The government's decision to challenge acquittal and discharges in past terror cases, including its appeal against the discharge of nine accused in the 2006 Malegaon blast case, filed in 2016, has however seen little progress in the Bombay High Court over the past eight years. Interestingly, two of the men— Shaikh Mohammed Ali (57) and Asif Khan Bashir Khan (54)—acquitted in the train blasts case were also among those discharged in the Malegaon case. The Maharashtra ATS had named nine men in the 2006 Malegaon blast case. The accusations against these men of having carried out the blasts was first investigated by the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) and later endorsed by the CBI, which took over the case a year later. However, in 2011, the National Investigation Agency (NIA), which took over the probe, filed a chargesheet absolving the nine men, including Khan and Ali, of all charges. Instead, the NIA named four other individuals, allegedly members of a Hindu extremist group, as the main accused. The nine men were released from prison in 2016, but the state government immediately challenged their discharge. While the trial of the four Hindu men named by the NIA is ongoing and all four are currently out on bail, the high ourt's hearing of the state government's appeal against the discharge of the nine original accused has barely progressed. While the seven men who were freed in 2016, along with Khan and Ali, are now outside prison, the delayed legal process has left them in limbo, with the fear of returning behind bars still hanging over their heads. 'We have been living a free life for over nine years now. However, the fear of being called back to prison definitely looms over our heads. The appeal by the state government against our acquittal has hardly moved in all this time. While we are thankful that the judiciary discharged us from the case, I also believe that there is a need to fast-track cases so that people can get closure,' said one of the men discharged in the Malegaon 2006 blast case. 2006 was a pivotal year for Maharashtra when it came to terror-related incidents, marked by three major cases. First, in May, the Maharashtra ATS intercepted a Tata Sumo near Chandwad in Nashik district in the Aurangabad arms haul case, where police seized 43kg of RDX, 16 AK-47 rifles, 3,200 rounds of ammunition, and 50 hand grenades. Subsequently, on July 11, 2006, a series of blasts in Mumbai's suburban trains claimed 187 lives. Two months later, on September 8, 2006, four blasts in Malegaon killed 31 people. During its investigation, the Maharashtra Police arrested and put on trial 44 people in connection with these three cases. Among them, three accused Mohammed Faisal Attaur Rahman Shaikh, Shaikh Mohammed Ali Alam, and Asif Khan Bashir Khan were common links across the incidents. Faisal was named in both the Aurangabad case and the Mumbai train blasts. While he was convicted in the Aurangabad arms haul case, he was acquitted in the Mumbai train blasts by the Bombay High Court. He is currently incarcerated in Aurangabad. Two other men, Asif Khan and Mohammed Ali Shaikh, were seen as main conspirators in both the Malegaon and Mumbai train blasts. Police alleged that they were central to Pakistani-sponsored subversive activities in India. In the Malegaon case, both men were accused of attending a meeting in July 2006 in Mumbai to plan the blasts, along with other co-conspirators and a few Pakistanis. They were also alleged to have taken these Pakistanis to Malegaon, where the bombs were assembled. These individuals then reportedly left Malegaon with Khan and Ali after assembling six bombs and storing them in a godown. Khan and Ali were among the nine men initially named in the Malegaon blasts before being discharged in 2016. Asif Khan Bashir Khan (54) – Status: Free The elder son of a scooter mechanic from Jalgaon, Asif Khan was locally known for his social activism, particularly on issues affecting slum dwellers. In 1996, at the age of 23, he took part in a protest against the demolition of homes in Khwaja Nagri. The protest turned violent, police opened fire, and two people were killed—one of them Asif's cousin—which spurred Khan's deeper involvement in activism. Later that year, Asif moved to Mumbai to work as a civil engineer. Police allege that around this time, he was radicalized, became a member of SIMI, and was in contact with Pakistani terror groups. He was arrested in 2006 and accused of procuring pressure cookers and assembling bombs for the Mumbai train blasts, including planting one at Borivali. He was also linked to the Malegaon blasts and accused of ferrying Pakistani nationals to Malegaon, who allegedly manufactured the bombs that exploded in the city. Khan, however, denied the charges, claiming he was at his Kandivali office on the day of the Mumbai train blasts. Shaikh Mohammed Ali (57) – Status: Free Shaikh Mohammed Ali was accused of traveling to Pakistan via Iran to receive subversive training. He was also accused of being part of the conspiracy and of allowing his residence in Govandi to be used for assembling the bombs used in the Mumbai train blasts, allegedly with the help of Pakistani nationals. He was further linked to the Malegaon blasts, accused of participating in the conspiracy and facilitating the travel of Pakistani individuals to Malegaon for planning the attacks. A resident of Shivaji Nagar ,one of Mumbai's poorest localities, Ali worked at a cooperative bank before moving to Dubai. He reportedly returned within a month and started a small business supplying Unani medicines. During this period, he was allegedly active in SIMI and had launched a campaign against video parlours in his locality. He had been previously booked for being a SIMI member and was summoned by police several times, including after the 2002–03 Mumbai blasts. According to investigators, his 100-square-foot home was used to assemble explosives and remained under constant police surveillance. Mohammed Faisal Attaur Rahman Shaikh (50) – Status: Incarcerated (Aurangabad Jail) Mira Road-based Faisal Shaikh, 50, was accused of heading the Lashkar-e-Toiba's (LeT) Mumbai unit and convicted for being the key financier of the 2006 Mumbai train blasts. He was accused of planning the conspiracy, acquiring hawala funds, harboring Pakistani operatives, assembling the bombs, and planting them. Faisal is the eldest of three sons of Attaur Rahman, who worked in Saudi Arabia. After spending time in Pune, the family shifted to Mira Road, where Faisal was allegedly indoctrinated by SIMI. Faisal is accused of conspiring as early as 1999 of waging a war against India by training Indian Muslim youth in terrorist activities. In June 2001, he obtained a valid Indian passport with the intention of traveling to Pakistan. Six months later, in January 2002, he allegedly crossed the border via the Samjhauta Express and trained with LeT operatives in Muzaffarabad and Lahore. He was also accused and subsequentyl convicted for being a part of a conspiracy in the Aurangabad arms haul case. Police claimed he was responsible for indoctrinating both his younger brothers. One of them—Muzammil (also arrested for the 2006 Mumbai train blast) was acquitted along with him while the other is reportedly absconding. His conviction in the Aurangabad case is the reason that he was not walked out free.
India.com
2 minutes ago
- India.com
No time, no money, no identity… :How 4.5 crore 'ghosts' are wandering in Pakistan
Ghost citizens- Representative AI image Ghost citizens of Pakistan: Pakistan is a funny country which gets appreciated from some countries for 'anti-terrorism' operations while actively promoting terrorism on its soil. In another amusing update, it has been reported that nearly 45 million of people in Pakistan who do not have official identity documents, are living as 'ghost citizens' in Pakistan. Who are the 'ghost citizens' of Pakistan? With no official identity documents, these Pakistani citizens are living without any resources, leaving them effectively invisible to the state. Readers should also note that most of the 'ghost citizens' are mostly from rural or underprivileged backgrounds where registering births is difficult due to high costs, lack of awareness, or bureaucratic hurdles, leading to more and more of such cases. How many 'ghost citizens' exist in Pakistan? Talking about the actual number, around 4.5 crore people in Pakistan lacked identity cards in 2021, making them 'ghost citizens' as per the National Database and Registration Authority. Although no updated figures have been released since, the number is huge. An example which explains the critical story of is the story of Ahmed Razah who is among those 4.5 crore people whom the Pakistani government does not recognize. Due to his identity-crisis, Ahmed Razah can neither study nor work in Pakistan. Raza's mother explains that Pakistan began issuing biometric ID cards in 2000. For Raza to get his own card, he needs documents from his mother or uncle—neither of whom possess valid ID themselves. Additionally, the cost of paperwork is around $165, which equals nearly one and a half months of Raza's income, making it unaffordable. Locals also report that bribes are often demanded during the registration process, but most people simply don't have the money to pay them.
New Indian Express
32 minutes ago
- New Indian Express
Trump plays golf in Scotland while protesters take to the streets and decry his visit
EDINBURGH: President Donald Trump played golf Saturday at his course on Scotland's coast while protesters around the country took to the streets to decry his visit and accuse United Kingdom leaders of pandering to the American. Trump and his son Eric played with the U.S. ambassador to Britain, Warren Stephens, near Turnberry, a historic course that the Trump family's company took over in 2008. Hundreds of protesters gathered on the cobblestone and tree-lined street in front of the U.S. Consulate about 100 miles (160 kilometers) away in Edinburgh, Scotland's capital. Speakers on a makeshift stage told the crowd that Trump was not welcome and they criticized British Prime Minister Keir Starmer for striking a recent trade deal to avoid stiff U.S. tariffs on goods imported from the U.K. Protests were planned in other cities as environmental activists, opponents of Israel's war in Gaza and pro-Ukraine groups loosely formed a 'Stop Trump Coalition." 'I think there are far too many countries that are feeling the pressure of Trump and that they feel that they have to accept him and we should not accept him here,' said June Osbourne, 52, a photographer and photo historian from Edinburgh who protested wearing a red cloak and white hood, recalling "The Handmaid's Tale." Osbourne held up picture of Trump with 'Resist' stamped over his face. The dual-U.S.-British citizen said the Republican president was "the worst thing that has happened to the world, the U.S., in decades.'
