Former Pakistan ISI chief Faiz Hameed arrested, court martial begins

Pakistan: Former Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) chief Lieutenant General (retired) Faiz Hameed has been arrested by the army, the army said on Monday. Hameed was arrested ahead of court martial in connection with the housing scheme scam. According to Dawn News, this is the first case in the history of the country when court martial action has been taken against a former intelligence chief. On November 8, 2023, Top City owner Moiz Ahmed Khan filed a petition in the Supreme Court, in which he accused Faiz of misusing his powers, the Tribune reported. The petition filed in the Supreme Court said that on May 12, 2017, ISI officials raided the Top City office and his house at the behest of General Faiz. An inquiry committee was reportedly formed by the army in April in light of the Supreme Court and Defence Ministry’s directives to probe allegations of abuse of power against the former Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) chief. “Following the orders of the Supreme Court of Pakistan, a detailed investigation was conducted by the Pakistan Army to ascertain the veracity of the complaints made in the Top City Case against Lt Gen Faiz Hameed (retd),” PTI quoted the army’s media wing Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) as saying. “As a result, appropriate disciplinary action has been initiated against Lt Gen Faiz Hameed (retd) under the provisions of the Pakistan Army Act.” Hameed was considered extremely powerful when he headed the spy agency from 2019 to 2021.