Firing outside Islamabad High Court as Imran Khan set to leave building

Islamabad: A firing incident was reported outside Islamabad High Court as former Prime Minister Imran Khan awaits safe passage, Dawn.com reported.
Confirming reports of the firing incident, Islamabad Police said there were no casualties. "All policemen were safe. Search teams are checking the vicinity," the Islamabad Police said in a tweet. The police said shots were fired at their personnel in the capital's G-11 and G-13 sectors.
Separately, a Dawn.com correspondent at the Islamabad High Court said gunshots were also heard there, from where PTI chief Imran Khan is yet to depart after hearings in several cases.
The Dawn.com correspondent said security was increased at the IHC premises after gunshots were heard, but the situation was back to normal now.
A Dawn.com correspondent, who is present on the site, has said snipers were posted at the buildings surrounding the high court.
This incident came hours after the IHC barred authorities from arresting PTI chairman Imran Khan in cases, including those that are undisclosed, registered across the country until Monday, May 15, Dawn reported.
The court also granted protective bail to the former prime minister in three terrorism cases registered against him in Lahore and the Zille Shah murder case.
Earlier in the day, a separate IHC bench accepted Imran's bail in the Al-Qadir Trust case for two weeks.
The verdict came a day after the Supreme Court termed his arrest "invalid and unlawful". It also stopped authorities from arresting the PTI chief till May 17 in any case registered in Islamabad after May 9, Dawn reported.
A division bench, comprising Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb and Justice Saman Rafat Imtiaz, granted Imran a two-week bail in the Al-Qadir Trust case, in connection with which the Rangers had whisked him away from the Islamabad premises on May 9.
The PTI chief's bail plea was heard and disposed of in courtroom No.2.
During the hearing, Justice Aurangzeb asked Imran if he condemned the violence that ensued after his arrest, to which the PTI chief's lawyer replied in the affirmative. The judge then asked the former premier to submit a declaration in court stating the same.
After the hearing concluded, Dawn.com's correspondent outside the court said a sea of PTI workers and supporters celebrated in the streets.
Separately, an IHC bench comprising Justice Tariq Mehmood Jahangiri and Justice Ejaz Ishaq Khan granted the PTI chief protective bail in three terrorism cases registered against him in Lahore for 10 days.
During the hearing, the PTI chief told the court that Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah had warned of arresting him again, saying that there was no rule of law in the country currently.
Earlier, Justice Jahangiri also approved Imran's protective bail in a case pertaining to the death of Zille Shah, a PTI worker who was killed during a party rally in Lahore earlier this year, for 10 days against surety bonds worth PKR 50,000, Dawn reported.
The ruling coalition -- Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) president Maulana Fazal-Ur-Rehman called on the nation to march towards Supreme Court and protest against the release of Imran Khan. He asked the party workers to resort to violence if touched or harmed by the security forces. (ANI)