Former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan was shot in the leg during a rally in the town of Wazirabad. The incident occurred near the town’s Allahwala Chowk. 

Imran has been leading a rally in a fresh election bid from the city of Lahore towards the capital in an attempt to retake office after he was ousted in April this year. The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf chief started his campaign on Friday last week. 

The shooting resulted in Imran being shot in his leg three to four times, according to a News18 report. While one of the attackers was killed in the aftermath, another was captured and handed over to police. 

Video footage showed a PTI party worker tackling one of the attackers from behind in an effort to grab the gun from the attacker. He has since been identified as Ibtisam Hassan. 

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Who is Ibtisam?

Ibtisam Hassan is a PTI youth worker who tackled one of the shooters who shot at Imran Khan in an attempt to stop them from causing more damage. 

The shooting left nine injured and one dead.

Since then, Ibtisam has received widespread praise on social media for his courage, party loyalty and presence of mind. He told Pakistani newspaper The Nation that he would not let anyone hurt the former prime minister. 

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“The accused opened fire at the container. I was with the view that he [accused] was carrying an automatic pistol. When I trapped the accused, one person already received the bullet,” Ibtisam said in a statement to reporters after the incident. 

He was reportedly walking next to Imran’s lorry along the bypass near Allahwala Chowk when he saw the man with a gun, whom he rushed to the moment he saw him loading the gun. 

Ibtisam said that it would be “tragic” if something happened to Imran in ‘his area’ and that they “all would have been ashamed.”