Former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on Thursday survived an alleged assassination during a ‘freedom’ rally in Pakistan’s Wazirabad.
The incident happened at Allahwala Chowk in Wazirabad town of Punjab, according to media reports.
He was reportedly shot in his right leg. However, later, he was said to be in a safe condition. Six workers from his party, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), including chief Faisal Javed and Ahmed Chattha were injured and one of the two assailants was caught.
But there was a certain Ibtisam Hassan, who jumped to action to save Khan and now he is being hailed a hero.
Also Read: Imran Khan Assassination Attempt: Events That Led To Attack On The Former Pakistan PM
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Who is Ibtisam Hassa?
An attempt to kill Imran Khan was thwarted by a young PTI member, Ibtisam Hassa, who seized the gunman and took the rifle away from him.
PTI members have hailed the man as a “saviour” and a video purportedly showed them carrying him on his shoulder and showering flowers on him for his brave act.
Speaking to local media, Ibtisam Hassan said that while Khan was delivering a speech on the container-mounted vehicle, he was standing at a distance of 10 to 12 feet from there. It was then that he saw a man loading his gun and firing a shot.
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Hassan further said that he immediately jumped at the attacker, seized him and amid the scuffle, the assailant fired one more shot that hit someone else.
“I saw him open fire and hit him before he could fire another round. He dropped the gun and started fleeing. I chased and caught him... Khan sahab, jab tak hum zinda hai, aanch nahi aa sakti. (Khan sir, till the time I am alive, you will not he harm.),” the supporter of the former PM said, according to a report in India Today.
Hassan believed that the gunman was carrying an automatic rifle. Speaking to reporters he said that he “would not let anybody harm Imran Khan”.
Who is the attacker?
The attacker, who fired a shot at Khan, has been identified as Naveed Mohammad Basheer, a resident of Sodhra in the Wazirabad district.
Basheer confessed to his crime accusing Khan of blasphemy, saying that it was the reason that prompted him to kill Khan. He further said that he was alone in plotting the assassination and no one else was backing him up.
“Imran Khan is misleading the people so I thought to kill him. He is doing blasphemy, playing music, and dancing when Azaan happens, I just want to kill Imran Khan. I will not leave him. There is no one behind me. I am alone," Basheer said in a video that went viral immediately.
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Basheer was nabbed by the police and taken to an “unknown location”.
After his ouster from the post of Prime Minister of Pakistan following a no-confidence motion against him in April, Khan has been in the midst of multiple political controversies as he has led, with his supporters, multiple rallies and processions in the last seven months demanding early elections in the country. Khan alleges that the “corrupt” government led by the unelected PM Shehbaz Sharif would drive the country to the brink of economic and political crisis.
Earlier in March, a senior leader from PTI had alleged that the former Pakistan prime minister's life is in danger and a plot has been hatched to assassinate him. PTI leader Faisal Vawda in an interview with Pakistan TV channel ARY News said,"PM Imran Khan has been advised to use a bulletproof shield while addressing the public gatherings but the PM said he will leave this world at the time fixed by Almighty Allah."
