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Sex, Drugs and a Zionist Conspiracy: The Scandals Threatening Imran Khan's Dream of Leading Pakistan
An 'active Zionist,' Jewish sympathizer, adulterer and sexual predator: Leaked excerpts from a tell-all book written by his ex-wife about Khan are convulsing the country. His allies call it a grotesque PR stunt and a political plot – but the damage could still be immense
Paul Gasnier
Jul 11, 2018 12:42 PM
Recent history has shown that ex-partners can pose a significant political risk for politicians. Especially if the circumstances of the split fuels resentment which spills over into an unquenchable desire to publish their side of the story.
Such a media storm has been sweeping over Pakistan about a scandal-filled book that, if it overcomes legal challenges, is just about burst on to the local media scene. It is by 45 year-old Reham Khan, a journalist and former BBC World weather-forecasting anchor. In this tell-all autobiography, Reham promises to reveal everything about her life.
But what’s keeping commentators and Pakistanis on the street alike on edge are the chapters dedicated to her ten-month marriage in 2015 with the man with a strong chance of being elected prime minister on July 25th: former Pakistani cricket captain Imran Khan.
View image on Twitter
Dawn.com
✔@dawn_com
Congratulations to Imran and Reham Khan! http://www.dawn.com/news/1155695/
2:29 PM - Jan 8, 2015
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Reham and Imran Khan in happier daysDawn/Twitter
The controversy started in June when excerpts of the manuscript leaked online. Some of its claims are explosive: Reham Khan alleges that Imran Khan required sexual favors in exchange for political appointments in his party, had illegal sexual relations with boys in his Islamabad residence, and conducted an adulterous affair with another woman while being married to her – that other woman being his current wife.
If some of the allegations titillate observers, they enrage Imran’s supporters. And some chapter titles (such as "Girls, Boys, Sex, Drugs and Rock and Roll" or "The Cocaine and The Heroin") are triggering serious panic in the party. PTI (Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, the Movement for Justice), is today the third largest in parliament and governs one of the country’s four provinces. It boasts over 10 million members.
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In conversations, some Pakistanis shrug off the gossip and consider the book a grotesque PR stunt from a woman who has fallen into public oblivion and wants to return to the spotlight. Others see a plot hatched by political opponents (an accusation flatly denied by other party leaders). Reham herself denies colluding with other political parties.
But this post-break-up feud is not just about maligning Imran Khan. It is also causing collateral damage: Reham Khan promises revelations about the murky machinery of Pakistani politics in general, where patronage and sexual coercion are rampant and intertwined.
The leaked extracts also make allegations about the personal lives of famous Pakistani journalists, actors, MPs, socialites, businessmen, and cricketers. Reham Khan has already been served legal notices by numerous personalities who accuse her of defaming them, and who are standing at the ready for a drawn-out legal battle to prevent the book’s publication.
Supporters of Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf headed Pakistani opposition politician Imran Khan celebrate a court ruling against former PM Nawaz Sharif, Karachi, Pakistan. July 6, 2018Shakil Adil/AP
Among the personalities Reham targets is Jemima Goldsmith, heiress of a British Jewish millionaire, who married Imran Khan in 1995. The couple had two children before divorcing in 2004. Although Goldsmith converted to Islam before their marriage, her Jewish ancestry has been a millstone around Imran Khan's neck ever since, and a fertile source of outlandish and anti-Semitic conspiracy theories.
His past marriage to a woman of Jewish descent is considered by many Pakistanis as an unforgivable stain on the energetically Islam-infused platform he is now running on. Imran advocates for an Islamic welfare state, condemns Western feminism for its "degenerating" effect on motherhood, and has recently vowed to protect the extremely controversial and severe anti-blasphemy laws.
Goldsmith reacted on Twitter, slamming the book as "libellous" and denouncing the "moronic, re-hashed Zionist conspiracy theories" it contained. She has also threatened to sue Reham Khan should the book reference her children in any way.
Jemima Goldsmith
https://twitter.com/Jemima_Khan
✔@Jemima_Khan
On Reham Khan's book I've been assured that it's too libellous to be published in the UK but if it is published here, I will be suing for defamation & breach of privacy on behalf of my (then) 16 yr old son & in relation to the moronic, re-hashed Zionist conspiracy theories. Sigh
4:55 PM - Jun 6, 2018
Twitter Ads info and privacy
According to the leaks, Reham Khan accuses her ex-husband of "sharing close ties with those with a clear interest in Israel," and with "active Zionists," and underlines his proximity to "Zionist Kate Rothschild" (Jemima’s stepsister), whose family participated in drafting the Balfour declaration.
This strategy isn't new in Pakistan.
"Imran has always received pot shots from the far right in regards to his marriage with Jemima," explains Salman Zaidi, director of the Jinnah Institute, a public policy think tank based in Islamabad. "It continued when he supported Zac Goldsmith [Jemima’s brother, a Conservative MP] during the 2016 London mayoral election." (Ironically, Zac was widely criticized for his campaign, in which he insinuated that Sadiq Khan, the Labour candidate who won the election, had links to Islamist extremists.)
Among the other "proofs" of Imran Khan’s purported "Jewish connection" brandished by the far right were his meetings – for the sake of an interview - with American-Israeli journalist Daphne Barak, erroneously identified as a relative of former Israeli PM Ehud Barak).
Pakistan Today@ePakistanToday
Imran shares close ties with ‘active Zionists’, claim new alleged excerpts from Reham Khan’s book | Pakistan Today https://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2018/06/08/imran-shares-close-ties-with-active-zionists-claim-new-alleged-excerpts-from-reham-khans-book/ …
2:13 PM - Jun 8, 2018
Twitter Ads info and privacy
Zaidi went on: "Obviously, Reham’s allegations can't be taken seriously. Imran is just as anti-Israel and pro-Palestine as the rest of Pakistan. And he has always tried to distance himself from his past and to disprove his supposed Israeli connections."
But by striking the anti-Semitic chords of the Pakistani audience - an easy way to get quick publicity for little cost in Pakistan, where the appeal of blaming the country’s problems on a Hindu-Zionist plot never palls - Reham threatens to undermine the support of a core votebank that Imran Khan must win over in order to be elected: the conservative Muslims who have never quite accepted the personal rebranding of an 80s party-going London womanizer into a pious Muslim candidate.
That transformation has been an uphill battle.
He has had to spend not inconsequential periods of time trying to divert national attention from his personal life and from the Jewish heritage of the mother of his two children (an endeavour which has led him to somewhat transparent acts of over-compensation, such as declaring Israel a terrorist state). He knows that for some of the Pakistani electorate, the distinction between Israel and Jewish individuals is irrelevant nitpicking.
Supporters of religious and political party Jamaat-e-Islami hold signs decalring 'Death to Israel' at a rally against U.S. President Donald Trump's Jerusalem decision. Karachi, Pakistan, December 17, REUTERS/Akhtar Soomro
If Reham Khan’s allegations are considered extreme, they are in tune with the current atmosphere in Pakistan. "In the last couple of months we’ve seen an increase in anti-Israeli sentiment," Salman Zaidi points out, "because of the moving of the U.S. embassy [to Jerusalem] and the clashes in Gaza. The Pakistani electorate is highly tuned into international news, and whatever goes down in Palestine is in every discussion. Politicians tend to respond to this sentiment by adopting a strident anti Israeli stance."
Like demons from the past coming back to haunt him, the publication of the book (or lack thereof) comes at a time when Imran Khan is peaking in the polls. And when the judicial quagmire in which the biggest party is embroiled offers him his best window of opportunity to become prime minister.
But supporters fear that, just like with Sisyphus, this book could trigger the boulder to come rolling down again, and smash Imran Khan’s hard-earned credibility – laundered of any Jewish-Zionist "contamination" - for good.
Paul Gasnier is a French journalist based in Paris. He reports for French television and works with foreign news outlets, with a strong focus on India and Pakistan. Twitter: @P_Gasnier
Paul Gasnier
https://www.haaretz.com/misc/writers/1.6062013
https://www.haaretz.com/world-news/...-in-a-political-scandal-in-pakistan-1.6266090
An 'active Zionist,' Jewish sympathizer, adulterer and sexual predator: Leaked excerpts from a tell-all book written by his ex-wife about Khan are convulsing the country. His allies call it a grotesque PR stunt and a political plot – but the damage could still be immense
Paul Gasnier
Jul 11, 2018 12:42 PM
Recent history has shown that ex-partners can pose a significant political risk for politicians. Especially if the circumstances of the split fuels resentment which spills over into an unquenchable desire to publish their side of the story.
Such a media storm has been sweeping over Pakistan about a scandal-filled book that, if it overcomes legal challenges, is just about burst on to the local media scene. It is by 45 year-old Reham Khan, a journalist and former BBC World weather-forecasting anchor. In this tell-all autobiography, Reham promises to reveal everything about her life.
But what’s keeping commentators and Pakistanis on the street alike on edge are the chapters dedicated to her ten-month marriage in 2015 with the man with a strong chance of being elected prime minister on July 25th: former Pakistani cricket captain Imran Khan.
View image on Twitter
Dawn.com
✔@dawn_com
Congratulations to Imran and Reham Khan! http://www.dawn.com/news/1155695/
2:29 PM - Jan 8, 2015
Twitter Ads info and privacy
Reham and Imran Khan in happier daysDawn/Twitter
The controversy started in June when excerpts of the manuscript leaked online. Some of its claims are explosive: Reham Khan alleges that Imran Khan required sexual favors in exchange for political appointments in his party, had illegal sexual relations with boys in his Islamabad residence, and conducted an adulterous affair with another woman while being married to her – that other woman being his current wife.
If some of the allegations titillate observers, they enrage Imran’s supporters. And some chapter titles (such as "Girls, Boys, Sex, Drugs and Rock and Roll" or "The Cocaine and The Heroin") are triggering serious panic in the party. PTI (Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, the Movement for Justice), is today the third largest in parliament and governs one of the country’s four provinces. It boasts over 10 million members.
Keep updated: Sign up to our newsletter
Email*
In conversations, some Pakistanis shrug off the gossip and consider the book a grotesque PR stunt from a woman who has fallen into public oblivion and wants to return to the spotlight. Others see a plot hatched by political opponents (an accusation flatly denied by other party leaders). Reham herself denies colluding with other political parties.
But this post-break-up feud is not just about maligning Imran Khan. It is also causing collateral damage: Reham Khan promises revelations about the murky machinery of Pakistani politics in general, where patronage and sexual coercion are rampant and intertwined.
The leaked extracts also make allegations about the personal lives of famous Pakistani journalists, actors, MPs, socialites, businessmen, and cricketers. Reham Khan has already been served legal notices by numerous personalities who accuse her of defaming them, and who are standing at the ready for a drawn-out legal battle to prevent the book’s publication.
Supporters of Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf headed Pakistani opposition politician Imran Khan celebrate a court ruling against former PM Nawaz Sharif, Karachi, Pakistan. July 6, 2018Shakil Adil/AP
Among the personalities Reham targets is Jemima Goldsmith, heiress of a British Jewish millionaire, who married Imran Khan in 1995. The couple had two children before divorcing in 2004. Although Goldsmith converted to Islam before their marriage, her Jewish ancestry has been a millstone around Imran Khan's neck ever since, and a fertile source of outlandish and anti-Semitic conspiracy theories.
His past marriage to a woman of Jewish descent is considered by many Pakistanis as an unforgivable stain on the energetically Islam-infused platform he is now running on. Imran advocates for an Islamic welfare state, condemns Western feminism for its "degenerating" effect on motherhood, and has recently vowed to protect the extremely controversial and severe anti-blasphemy laws.
Goldsmith reacted on Twitter, slamming the book as "libellous" and denouncing the "moronic, re-hashed Zionist conspiracy theories" it contained. She has also threatened to sue Reham Khan should the book reference her children in any way.
Jemima Goldsmith
https://twitter.com/Jemima_Khan
✔@Jemima_Khan
On Reham Khan's book I've been assured that it's too libellous to be published in the UK but if it is published here, I will be suing for defamation & breach of privacy on behalf of my (then) 16 yr old son & in relation to the moronic, re-hashed Zionist conspiracy theories. Sigh
4:55 PM - Jun 6, 2018
Twitter Ads info and privacy
According to the leaks, Reham Khan accuses her ex-husband of "sharing close ties with those with a clear interest in Israel," and with "active Zionists," and underlines his proximity to "Zionist Kate Rothschild" (Jemima’s stepsister), whose family participated in drafting the Balfour declaration.
This strategy isn't new in Pakistan.
"Imran has always received pot shots from the far right in regards to his marriage with Jemima," explains Salman Zaidi, director of the Jinnah Institute, a public policy think tank based in Islamabad. "It continued when he supported Zac Goldsmith [Jemima’s brother, a Conservative MP] during the 2016 London mayoral election." (Ironically, Zac was widely criticized for his campaign, in which he insinuated that Sadiq Khan, the Labour candidate who won the election, had links to Islamist extremists.)
Among the other "proofs" of Imran Khan’s purported "Jewish connection" brandished by the far right were his meetings – for the sake of an interview - with American-Israeli journalist Daphne Barak, erroneously identified as a relative of former Israeli PM Ehud Barak).
Pakistan Today@ePakistanToday
Imran shares close ties with ‘active Zionists’, claim new alleged excerpts from Reham Khan’s book | Pakistan Today https://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2018/06/08/imran-shares-close-ties-with-active-zionists-claim-new-alleged-excerpts-from-reham-khans-book/ …
2:13 PM - Jun 8, 2018
Twitter Ads info and privacy
Zaidi went on: "Obviously, Reham’s allegations can't be taken seriously. Imran is just as anti-Israel and pro-Palestine as the rest of Pakistan. And he has always tried to distance himself from his past and to disprove his supposed Israeli connections."
But by striking the anti-Semitic chords of the Pakistani audience - an easy way to get quick publicity for little cost in Pakistan, where the appeal of blaming the country’s problems on a Hindu-Zionist plot never palls - Reham threatens to undermine the support of a core votebank that Imran Khan must win over in order to be elected: the conservative Muslims who have never quite accepted the personal rebranding of an 80s party-going London womanizer into a pious Muslim candidate.
That transformation has been an uphill battle.
He has had to spend not inconsequential periods of time trying to divert national attention from his personal life and from the Jewish heritage of the mother of his two children (an endeavour which has led him to somewhat transparent acts of over-compensation, such as declaring Israel a terrorist state). He knows that for some of the Pakistani electorate, the distinction between Israel and Jewish individuals is irrelevant nitpicking.
Supporters of religious and political party Jamaat-e-Islami hold signs decalring 'Death to Israel' at a rally against U.S. President Donald Trump's Jerusalem decision. Karachi, Pakistan, December 17, REUTERS/Akhtar Soomro
If Reham Khan’s allegations are considered extreme, they are in tune with the current atmosphere in Pakistan. "In the last couple of months we’ve seen an increase in anti-Israeli sentiment," Salman Zaidi points out, "because of the moving of the U.S. embassy [to Jerusalem] and the clashes in Gaza. The Pakistani electorate is highly tuned into international news, and whatever goes down in Palestine is in every discussion. Politicians tend to respond to this sentiment by adopting a strident anti Israeli stance."
Like demons from the past coming back to haunt him, the publication of the book (or lack thereof) comes at a time when Imran Khan is peaking in the polls. And when the judicial quagmire in which the biggest party is embroiled offers him his best window of opportunity to become prime minister.
But supporters fear that, just like with Sisyphus, this book could trigger the boulder to come rolling down again, and smash Imran Khan’s hard-earned credibility – laundered of any Jewish-Zionist "contamination" - for good.
Paul Gasnier is a French journalist based in Paris. He reports for French television and works with foreign news outlets, with a strong focus on India and Pakistan. Twitter: @P_Gasnier
Paul Gasnier
https://www.haaretz.com/misc/writers/1.6062013
https://www.haaretz.com/world-news/...-in-a-political-scandal-in-pakistan-1.6266090
