An Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) in Islamabad has issued an order to block the passports of 24 Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leaders, among them Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi, Omar Ayub, and Asad Qaiser. This action relates to the violent protest held on November 26, 2024.

The protest aimed to pressure the government into releasing the party’s founder, Imran Khan, who has been incarcerated since August 2023. Khan, a 71-year-old former cricketer turned politician, faces multiple charges ranging from corruption to terrorism following his removal from office through a no-confidence vote in April 2022.

During the hearing on Monday, ATC Judge Abual Hasnat Muhammad Zulqarnain noted that the evidence indicated the accused had been formally nominated in the case. The investigating officer informed the court that the suspects might attempt to flee the country to avoid prosecution.

The court highlighted the gravity of the allegations, which include attacks on state institutions and the promotion of terrorism. It also pointed out that many accused had not appeared before the court, and even those granted interim bail had failed to participate in the investigation.

Consequently, the court approved the investigating officer’s request to block the passports of the accused and instructed the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to enforce this order until further notice.

Besides the previously mentioned leaders, the order encompasses lawmakers Shehram Tarakai, Shah Ahmed, Sher Ali Arbab, Muhammad Iqbal Afridi, Dr. Amjad Ali, Junaid Akbar, Shahid Khattak, and Zubair Wazir. Other individuals affected include Arshad Umarzai, Zar Alam, Mian Umar, Akhtar Khan, Humayun Khan, Riaz Khan, Abdul Kabir Khan, Tufail Anjum, Asif Mehsud, Ajab Gul, Muhammad Usman, Babar Saleem Swati, Irfan Saleem, Advocate Ali Zaman, and Malik Shahab.