ISLAMABAD: British politician Zac Goldsmith has faced widespread backlash in Pakistan after writing a letter to UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband lobbying for the release of convicted former prime minister Imran Khan, with people describing the action as an intervention in Pakistan’s internal legal affairs. The letter comes despite Imran Khan’s sister Dr Uzma Khan, saying on Friday that the PTI founder is completely healthy.
Imran Khan is a convicted prisoner serving sentences handed down by courts following legal proceedings in multiple cases. The former prime minister was convicted in corruption cases.
On August 21, 2026, Imran Khan’s former brother-in-law, Zac Goldsmith, wrote a letter to the UK Foreign Secretary, Ed Miliband, urging him to raise the issue of Imran Khan’s conviction at the diplomatic level with Pakistan.
Zac Goldsmith is again lobbying for Imran Khan abroad. Pakistan’s legal matters should be decided by its courts, not through foreign pressure, an overseas Pakistani said.
Senior Pakistani journalist Ammar Masood stated that Pakistan’s legal matters should be decided by its courts, not through foreign pressure.
Zac Goldsmith is again lobbying for Imran Khan abroad, despite his sister Dr Uzma Khan stating on August 21 that he is healthy. Pakistan’s legal matters should be decided by its courts not through foreign pressure#RejectForeignInterference #PakistanFirst
— Ammar Masood (@ammarmasood3) August 22, 2026
Human rights activist Khawaja Yaseen Usmani stated that Zac Goldsmith’s intervention is a clear case of selective outrage and unwarranted foreign interference. “If Imran Khan’s health situation is truly as serious as claimed, let the medical evidence, treating doctors, hospital records and courts establish the facts—not foreign lobbying or sympathy manufactured for political purposes,” Yaseen Usmani said.
Zac Goldsmith’s intervention is a clear case of selective outrage and unwarranted foreign interference. If Imran Khan’s health situation is truly as serious as claimed, let the medical evidence, treating doctors, hospital records and courts establish the facts—not foreign…
— Khawaja Yaseen Usmani (@YaseenUSM_Offl) August 22, 2026
Social media users stated that the attempts by the Goldsmith family to write letters to British authorities and engineer propaganda against Pakistan are deeply condemnable. They stated that this move is a direct affront to the dignity and sovereignty of the people of Pakistan.
The Goldsmith family should stop meddling in Pakistan’s internal affairs. Foreign interference will never be allowed to dictate terms to a sovereign nation, social media users stated.
Human rights activist Yasir Rehman said Zac Goldsmith’s intervention in Pakistan’s internal matters is a textbook case of transactional politics. He said Pakistan’s judicial system operates strictly under its own Constitution and laws, not foreign letters or political lobbying.
“Zac Goldsmith should focus on Britain’s pressing domestic issues rather than lecturing a sovereign nation on its legal decisions,” Rehman said in a statement posted on X.
You scratch my back, and I’ll scratch yours"—Zac Goldsmith’s hypocritical intervention in Pakistan’s internal matters is a textbook case of transactional politics.
When Imran Khan backed his ex-brother-in-law over Sadiq Khan—a British Muslim candidate who better represented the… https://t.co/fUHknUh9bK— Yasir Rehman (@YasirrRehman) August 22, 2026
On Friday, PTI leaders told a news conference that Khan had been kept in solitary confinement.
The Washington Post reported that the Ministry of Information rejected allegations that Khan was being held in solitary confinement or denied meaningful contact with his family. It said that Khan had received more than 900 visits from family members, lawyers, doctors, political representatives and other approved visitors since his imprisonment in 2023. It said that he has also been allowed weekly meetings with his wife, and telephone, landline and WhatsApp contact with relatives in Pakistan and abroad.
According to the ministry, Khan’s sisters had met him as recently as August 18 and 19. The government said Khan has access to reading material and television, and is allowed home-cooked food and exercise equipment and “maintains a healthy diet.” It said, however, that access to Khan couldn’t be used to send political messages from prison.
Pakistan’s Information Minister Attaullah Tarar on Saturday said the government’s position on the matter had remained unchanged: health issues should not be politicised. He said Imran’s medical examination was conducted, his sister was present, and doctors from Shifa International Hospital also participated in the process.
Also Read: Govt Says PTI Violated Apex Court Order Over Imran Khan’s Medical Examination
A statement issued by the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) on Saturday confirmed that two specialists from Shifa International Hospital participated in Imran Khan’s ophthalmological assessment.
Tarar said the government had never stopped Imran’s treatment and urged that his health should not be made a subject of political controversy.
