In a first, Pakistan sentences its former spy chief to 14 years in prison

Lieutenant General Faiz Hameed, who was the head of Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) during former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s leadership, was convicted of four charges related to engaging in political activities, violating the Official Secrets Act, misusing government resources, and causing financial loss.

Pakistan’s former spy chief will appeal the 14-year sentence he was meted out on Thursday by a military court, in what his lawyer described as a “sham” military trial.  

The conviction is a landmark in Pakistan, marking the first time a spy chief has been convicted and sentenced to prison in the South Asian country.

He was sentenced to 14 years of “rigorous imprisonment”, also known as hard labour, a meteoric fall for someone who was once considered the second-most powerful man in the Pakistani military. 

Hameed's lawyer, Ali Ashfaq, told AFP that Hameed did not have legal representation at the trial and he planned to appeal the prison sentence "within the next few days”.

"My client categorically rejects the charges from the beginning of such sham trial proceedings," Ashfaq said.

Ashfaq said that neither Hameed's defence team nor his family had been notified in advance of the trial on 11 December to ensure that he had lawyers present, adding that he only found out about the judgement via the army’s official press release.

Ashfaq also told AFP he had yet to receive a copy of the military court ruling.

'A message for Imran Khan'

Court-martial proceedings against Hameed began on 12 August 2024 under a provision of the Pakistani Army Act, according to a statement released by the public relations arm of the Pakistani military (ISPR) on Thursday. He was the first ISI chief to be court-martialled. 

ISPR said Hameed has the right to appeal the decision. Ashfaq told the BBC that “the first forum for appeal is the army chief, so that is what we will do".

“We are hopeful that at the next forum we will present our case and obtain justice," he added. 

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The case is widely being viewed in Pakistan as a message to Hameed's ally, Khan, and his supporters.

Former Prime Minister Khan handpicked Hameed in 2019 to lead the powerful ISI, and a separate investigation is being launched into allegations that Hameed was involved in protests against Khan's arrest on 9 May 2023.

Political analyst Arifa Noor told AFP that "everything is a message for Imran Khan these days, including this".

Khan was democratically elected in 2018. But he was ousted after a parliamentary no-confidence vote in 2022 and has been in prison since August 2023. Khan was initially sentenced in May 2023 to three years in prison for misusing his position as prime minister to buy and sell state gifts, a charge he vehemently denies.

Later in August 2023, Khan's conviction was overturned, and he was granted bail, but on the same day, he was charged with violating the Official State Secrets Act. Khan has since faced several new charges and has been acquitted in some, while he remains in prison pending other cases and appeals.

Khan maintains that the military orchestrated his downfall and has pursued his Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party and its allies.

In a post on X on 27 November, Khan’s son Kasim said his father is being denied prison visits and calls from family members despite court orders allowing access, and he has been in solitary confinement since mid-October. 

In a long social media post on 4 December, Khan said he and his wife had been “imprisoned on fabricated charges at his [Field Marshal Asim Munir’s] command, and we are being subjected to severe psychological torment".

He accused Munir of being “a mentally unstable person whose moral degradation has led to the complete collapse of the Constitution and the rule of law in Pakistan, leaving the fundamental human rights of every Pakistani unprotected”. 

“Enduring solitary confinement is extremely painful, but I am bearing it only for the sake of my nation, his post said.