Two former brigadiers, a colonel linked to Faiz Hameed's case taken into custody: ISPR

After the arrest of former ISI director general and initiation of court-martial of Lt-General (retd) Faiz Hameed, three more retired Army officers have been taken into custody, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.

According to a statement issued by the military’s media wing, Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR), on Thursday, in the matter of Field General Court Martial of Lt-Gen (retd) Faiz Hameed, three more retired officers were also in military custody.

The ISPR said these officers were taken into custody for violating military discipline.

The ISPR statement further said that investigations were underway into the actions of these retired officers and their accomplices, who were suspected of fomenting instability in collusion with vested political interests.

These suspects were believed to have acted at the behest of political entities, compromising military discipline, the statement added.

The ISPR said these three retired officers were currently in military custody, in connection with the court-martial proceedings of Lt-General (retd) Faiz Hameed.

The military is continuing its probe into the involvement of these officers and others in activities detrimental to national stability.

Detained officers named

The names of the three retired officers have come to surface which are Brigadier (retd) Ghaffar, Brigadier (retd) Naeem and Colonel (retd) Asim.

According to sources, these officers had acted as messengers between Faiz Hameed and the political party.

Both retired brigadiers belonged to Chakwal and were favourites of Faiz Hameed and were involved in “political messaging” and facilitation.

In an unprecedented move a few days ago, former Inter Service Intelligence (ISI) director general Lt-General (retd) Faiz Hameed was detained by military authorities and court-martial proceedings were initiated against him on charges of corruption, misuse of authority and violating the Pakistan Army Act.

The charges against Gen Faiz dated back to May 2017, when he was the DG-C in the country's premier intelligence agency.

"Complying with the orders of Supreme Court of Pakistan, a detailed court of inquiry was undertaken by Pakistan Army, to ascertain correctness of complaints in Top City case made against Lt-Gen Faiz Hameed (retd),” read an ISPR statement.

"Consequently, appropriate disciplinary action has been initiated against Lt-General Faiz Hameed (retd), under provisions of Pakistan Army Act. In addition, multiple instances of violation of Pakistan Army Act post retirement have also been established. The process of Field General Court Martial has been initiated and Lt-Gen Faiz Hameed has been taken into military custody," the statement added.

In April, the Army constituted a high-level inquiry committee headed by a major general to look into the allegations against Lt-Gen Faiz. The inquiry was ordered in pursuant to the orders of the Supreme Court and in the light of the directives of the defence ministry.

This was the first formal inquiry ordered against Lt-Gen Faiz, who had resigned in November 2022 – four months before his retirement date. Lt-Gen Faiz had served as DG C in the ISI and later served as the director general of the spy agency.

Reporter Ahmad Mansoor