Court suspends Imran Khan jail sentence after appeal

STORY: A Pakistani court has granted former prime minister Imran Khan an appeal of his conviction for graft, his lawyer said on Monday (April 1).

The decision suspends a 14-year jail sentence handed down to both him and his wife just a week before February's elections, on charges of unlawfully selling state gifts worth more than $500,000.

The Islamabad High Court said a final decision on the conviction will be taken up for arguments and evidence as a main petition after Eid holidays.

Khan, however, will remain in jail on multiple other sentences also imposed before the elections.

Those disqualify him from holding any public office for 10 years.

Still, the decision brings relief for Khan's embattled party, which won the most seats in February's national polls.

The ex-cricket star's lawyer Ali Zafar told supporters they were now working on other cases.

"Tomorrow, we will be be trying to get a suspension in the disclosing state secrets case also. If that is suspended, as I said earlier, after that there will be no hurdle to Imran Khan's release from prison."

Khan and his party say the charges are made-up to keep him out of politics ordered by the country's powerful army after he fell out with the military's generals.

The army denies the accusation.