Islamabad, Pakistan – A gunman opened fire at a container truck carrying Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Imran Khan on Thursday, wounding him slightly and also some of his supporters, a senior leader from his party and police said.
Party official Asad Umar says Khan was wounded in the foot and was not seriously hurt.
The attack happened in the Wazirabad district in the eastern Punjab province. Khan was traveling in a large convoy of trucks and cars heading towards the capital, Islamabad, as part of his campaign aimed at forcing the government to hold early elections.
Video footage from the scene shows Mr Khan and his supporters riding on top of a shipping container towed by a lorry before a burst of gunfire is heard. Mr Khan is then seen ducking, as those around him try to cover him.
Another video shows a conscious Mr Khan with a bandage on his right leg being taken away in a vehicle after the shooting.
He was moved to another vehicle from his container truck, from where announcements were being made that he was safe. Some of the supporters from his Tehreek-e-Insaf party were also wounded, according to the announcement.
The attack happened less than a week after Khan began his march from Lahore, the capital of Punjab province, along with thousands of supporters.
Since his ouster in a no-confidence vote in Parliament in April, Khan has alleged that his ouster was a conspiracy engineered by his successor, Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif, and the United States — claims that both the new premier and Washington have denied.
