Pakistan's parliament will vote on Saturday on whether to remove Imran Khan as prime minister, days after Khan blocked a similar attempt, potentially adding to political and economic uncertainty in the nuclear-armed country.

Ahead of the vote, Khan is widely expected to lose. The former cricket star vowed to "fight" against any move to oust him, the latest development in a crisis that threatens the political and economic stability of the South Asian nation of 220 million people.

On Thursday, the Supreme Court ruled that Khan broke the constitution last Sunday by blocking a confidence vote scheduled for Sunday, dissolving parliament and calling for early elections. The court ordered the parliament to reconvene.

Members of Parliament will return to the House on Saturday morning. The vote request submitted by opposition leader Shahbaz Sharif is the fourth item on today's agenda.

Khan, 69, rose to power in 2018 with the support of the military. But he recently lost his parliamentary majority when allies withdrew from his coalition government. Opposition parties say he has failed to revive the economy hit by the COVID-19 pandemic and has not fulfilled his promises to root out corruption from the country and make Pakistan a prosperous nation respected on the world stage.

The opposition and some analysts say Khan is at odds with the military, a charge he and the military denied. The military has ruled the country for half of its 75-year post-colonial history, and no prime minister has completed his full five-year term.

Khan enjoyed broad public support when he took office and said he was disappointed with the court's decision but agreed. He had called for elections after the dissolution of the parliament. But he made it clear that he would not recognize any opposition government to replace him.

Imran Khan: 'I am ready to struggle'

"I will not accept an imported government," he said in an address to the nation late yesterday, noting that the move to oust him as part of a foreign plot and called for peaceful protests on Sunday. "I am ready to fight," he said.

Khan opposed the US-led intervention in Afghanistan and has strengthened ties with Russia since becoming prime minister. He accuses the United States of supporting a plot to overthrow him without providing evidence of his accusation. Washington denies the accusation.

And if Khan loses the no-confidence vote, the opposition can nominate a prime minister from among its ranks.

After the court ruling, Shahbaz Sharif, the younger brother of former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, said that the opposition had nominated him to take over if the parliament impeached Khan.