Trump's incoming envoy calls for PTI founder's release

Richard Grenell, who has been picked by United States (US) President-elect Donald Trump as presidential envoy for special missions, said he would like to see Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder and former Prime Minister Imran Khan out of jail.

Speaking to a US news outlet, Richard Grenell said, “There are a lot of the same allegations just like President Trump, where the ruling party put him in prison and created some sort of corruption allegations and false allegations.”

“I would like to see Imran Khan be released from jail,” Richard Grenell told NEWSMAX.

The special envoy of President-elect Donald Trump was of the view that the people of Pakistan should decide if Imran Khan wants to run for office.

“[The US] had a much better relationship with Pakistan during the Trump administration when Imran Khan was the leader because [he] was an outsider. He [Imran Khan] was a former cricket player, he wasn’t a politician and he spoke in very common sense language, and he and Donald Trump had a very good relationship.”

Earlier in November, the US Congress members once again wrote a letter to President Joe Biden, expressing grave concern over the detention of Imran Khan and the human rights situation in Pakistan.

At least 54 members of the US House of Representatives wrote outgoing US president Joe Biden, asking him to advocate for the immediate release of incarcerated PTI founder.

While terming Imran Khan’s arrest as ‘unlawful’ the US Congress members called on the Biden administration to advocate for release of other political prisoners.

“A focal point of our concern is the unlawful detention of former Prime Minister Imran Khan, widely perceived to be Pakistan’s most popular political figure. We urgently call on the U.S. government to advocate for the immediate release of former Prime Minister Khan and all political prisoners, and to ensure their safety in line with the findings of the UN Working Group report,” the letter read.

The US Congress members also demanded immediate action on the resolution of the House of Representatives on the human rights situation in Pakistan.