Pakistan court orders Prime Minister's removal from office
Pakistan's Supreme Court has disqualified Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif from public office over long-running corruption allegations, a decision that ousts him from the premiership for the third time in a chequered political career.
"He is disqualified as a member of the parliament so he has ceased to be holding the office of Prime Minister," Justice Ejaz Afzal Khan told the packed courtroom in Islamabad.
As the verdict was announced opposition supporters erupted in applause, rushing into the street chanting slogans and handing out sweets in celebration.
The decision brings to an unceremonious end Sharif's third term in power, roughly one year before scheduled general elections which would have seen him become the first Pakistani prime minister to complete a full five-year term.
Most have seen their tenures cut short by the powerful military or interference from the Supreme Court. Others have been ousted by their own party, forced to resign - or been assassinated.
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The court also asked the national anti-corruption bureau to launch a further probe into the allegations against Sharif, which stem from the Panama Papers leak last year linking the premier's family to lucrative offshore businesses.
The bureau has the power to arrest and bring criminal charges against those it investigates.
The Supreme Court had in April declared there was "insufficient evidence" to oust Sharif over the graft allegations engulfing his family, and ordered an investigation team to probe the matter.