Pakistan Army arrests its former Spy Chief Lt. Gen (R) Faiz Hameed 

Lt Gen (R) Faiz Hameed

By Nasir Aijaz
The AsiaN Representative

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Army has arrested Lt. Gen. (Retired) Faiz Hameed, the former Chief of country’s spy agency Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), in connection with a housing scheme scandal. He will now face the Court Martial.

“Former ISI chief Lt General (R) Faiz Hameed has been taken into custody,” said the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) in a statement on Monday.

The military’s media wing said, “Complying with the orders of the Supreme Court of Pakistan, a detailed court of inquiry was undertaken by the Pakistan Army, to ascertain correctness of complaints in Top City (Housing Scheme) Case made against Lt Gen (R) Faiz Hameed.”

Consequently, appropriate disciplinary action has been initiated against the former spy chief under provisions of Pakistan Army Act,” ISPR added.

The ISPR stated that several violations of the Pakistan Army Act after his retirement have been confirmed against the former general.

A file photo of Lt Gen Faiz Hameed with then Prime Minister Imran Khan

“The process of Field General Court Martial has been initiated and Lt. Gen. ® Faiz Hameed has been taken into military custody,” the ISPR added.

The military had reportedly formed an inquiry committee in April this year to investigate allegations of misuse of authority against the former head of the ISI.

Lt. Gen (R) Faiz Hameed was considered extremely powerful when he headed the spy agency as Director-General from June 2019 to October 2021. He was also known as very close to then Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan, who wanted to appoint him as the next Army Chief.

Moreover, Faiz Hameed is known for brokering truce between Sirajuddin Haqqani of the Haqqani network and Taliban headed by Mullah Yakub in Afghanistan. As chief spymaster, his tenure saw Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan and a face-saving exit by the United States on August 15, 2021. The ISI under him is widely believed to have backed the Taliban in its march to capital Kabul and ultimate takeover of power.

Hameed visited Kabul just a month after the Taliban took charge and discussed bilateral relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan after US withdrawal. Prior to his stint in the ISI, he served as an Adjutant General in the General Army Headquarters in Rawalpindi. He has also served as Corp Commander in Peshawar and Bahawalpur units before his retirement.

According to some analysts, Lt. Gen. Faiz Hameed, reportedly, was the mastermind of attacks on the army installations on May 9 last year when ousted Prime Minister Imran Khan was arrested.

Lt Gen Faiz Hameed

An analyst in a talk show on a private TV channel viewed that as a result of Field Court Martial, Faiz Hameed could lose all post-retirement benefits and other privileges, and also might face stripping off his military rank and a punishment of life sentence to capital punishment.

The analyst said that the owner of housing scheme Top City had filed a case in the apex court alleging that Lt. Gen. (R) Faiz Hameed had tried to grab the housing scheme land worth 1200 billion Pakistani rupees. Subsequently, the apex court had directed the Ministry of Defence to initiate the inquiry against Faiz Hameed.