Imran Khan gets bail on murder charges

ISLAMABAD, June 08 (Reuters): Ousted Pakistani prime minister Imran Khan secured bail on Thursday from the Islamabad High Court over new murder charges, blocking his arrest in that case for 14 days, his lawyer said.
The ousted prime minister had been arrested on May 9 and held for three days, triggering violent protests by his followers. He is now free on bail in a range of other criminal cases.
He had travelled to the capital from his Lahore home to seek bail in the murder case and extend his bail in over a dozen other cases, to avoid a new arrest, said the lawyer, Barrister Gohar Khan.
The 70-year-old former cricket hero who become prime minister in 2018 has been embroiled in a confrontation with the powerful military since he was ousted in a no-confidence vote last year.
The military has ruled directly or overseen civilian governments throughout the history of a country in which political confrontations are often fought out in court.
Khan's May 9 arrest on corruption charges, which he denies, sparked protests by his supporters who ransacked military facilities, raising new worries about the stability of the nuclear armed country of 220 million people.