‘US lawmaker tweeted ‘Free Imran Khan’ after fundraising assurance’

Senior journalist and analyst Najam Sethi has claimed that Republican Joe Wilson posted in favour of jailed Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder Imran Khan, particularly “Free Imran Khan”, after being assured of fundraising from Pakistani diaspora.

Sethi said that following Wilson’s social media post about the jailed former premier, he asked someone about the sudden shift in behaviour of the American lawmaker who had recently met with Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi on the latter’s visit to attend President Donald Trump’s inauguration.

He quoted sources as saying that the post came after Pakistani community in the US assured Wilson of raising funds. “Fundraising is very important for politics there [in the US]. On the basis of fundraising, they [politicians] take a turn and change their policies entirely,” Sethi explained.

Earlier, the series of social media posts in jailed Khan’s favour saw Wilson taking to X (formerly Twitter) to post, “Free Imran Khan”. He was followed by Jack Bergman, another Republican congressman, who also called for the release of Khan.

“The facts are straightforward, it’s no time to mince words. Free Imran Khan,” Bergman also wrote on X.

The posts once again sparked speculation, with analysts drawing connections to “successful lobbying by PTI” in the US, United Kingdom (UK) and other countries. It also once again led to discussions on President Trump’s alleged support for Khan.

It merits a mention that the Republican representative, a day after tweeting about Khan, also wrote, “The Iranian regime is weaker than ever before with few friends left. Few expected Assad would fall and the same will happen in Iran. The people will overthrow the regime soon. Free Iran [sic].”

“Free Iraq from Iran,” he wrote in another post. “Free Yemen from Iran,” read another statement.

Earlier, the presidential envoy for special missions, Richard Grenell, following the crackdown of security forces on PTI demonstrators in November in Islamabad, had posted on his account on X in favour of Imran Khan, writing, “Free Imran Khan!”. However, he did not receive much attention at that time.

Grenell was discussed in Pakistan politics on December 15, 2024, when Trump appointed him as his Special Envoy for Global Missions in his administration. His social media posts then were amplified by PTI supporters.