A court in Karachi found ousted prime minister Nawaz...

A court in Karachi found ousted prime minister Nawaz Sharif guilty of terrorism and hijacking and sentenced him to life imprisonment. The sentence spared Sharif, the twice-elected and twice-deposed premier, from the death sentence which the prosecution had demanded for hijacking, a capital offence. He was cleared of two other charges of kidnapping and attempted murder. Sharif was arrested after the military seized power on October 12, 1999. He was accused of preventing by force the landing of a plane carrying 198 passengers, including the new ruler, General Pervaiz Musharraf. Six others, including Sharif's brother, were acquitted by the lower court judge, Rehmat Hussain Jafri. Sharif is unlikely to spend the remainder of his life behind bars, as under the Pakistani judiciary system life imprisonment means 25 years in prison.