Faiz Hameed

Faiz was born in village of Latifal, Chakwal in Punjab Province and joined the Pakistan Military Academy in 1987. He graduated from Command & Staff College, Quetta and was commissioned in the Baloch Regiment of the Pakistan Army. He has three brothers, Sardar Sikandar Hayat, Sardar Najaf, and Sardar Khizar. His brother Sikandar Hayat died in 2016 in an accident while his brother Sardar Najaf Hameed is a land revenue officer in his hometown. Faiz Hameed's family belongs to Chakwal which is known for producing military commanders.^[12]

Faiz was commissioned in the Pakistan Army's Baloch Regiment. He served as Adjutant General at the GHQ in Rawalpindi from April 2019 to June 2019. He previsouly served as head of the Counter-Intelligence Wing (DG-C) of ISI from January 2017 to April 2019. He has remained GOC (General Officer Commanding) of 16 infantry divisions at Pano Akil Cantonment from June 2015 to January 2017 and DG Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) from June 2019 to 6 October 2021. He also served as Corp Commander In Peshawar and Bahawalpur until his retirement.^[12]

Major-General Faiz Hameed served as head of the ISI (Counter Intelligence Wing), better known as (DG-C) from 2017 to 2019. Later as Lieutenant General Hameed served as Director-General of Inter-Services Intelligence (DG-ISI) from June 2019 to 6 October 2021. He was the 29th Director-General of ISI. Lt Gen Faiz Hameed is best known for the role of chief spymaster. In September 2021, he visited Kabul just a month after the Afghan Taliban took control of the country and discussed the changes after the US withdrawal.

From 2017 to 2019, Major-General Faiz Hameed served as Director General Counter-Intelligence Directorate of ISI. As DG-C, Faiz was accused by the PML-N for his alleged role in the ouster of Nawaz Sharif and bringing Imran Khan into power at the behest of General Qamar Javed Bajwa.^[13][14]

Major-General Faiz Hameed in its role as DG-C reportedly mediated between protestors of Faizabad-sit in and then PML-N government.^[15] Faiz Hameed's mediation was taken as action beyond his constitutional mandate due to which Hameed confronted with severe criticism.^[16] Hameed was accused of having engineered the three-week sit-in at the Faizabad interchange that paralysed Islamabad and triggered violence at several places nationwide. Faiz Hameed's role in Faizabad was also criticised by Supreme Court in one of its verdict. As a result of the Faizabad protest, the PML-N government had to fire its Law Minister Zahid Hamid. It is widely held the demonstration aggravated the unpopularity of PMLN government resulted in its defeat during 2018 general elections. In 2024 an enquiry commission relieved Faiz Hameed of charges acting beyond his authority.^{[17][18][19][20][21][22][16][excessive citations]}

The PMLN leadership alleges 2018 general elections were heavily engineered in favour of PTI. PMLN and other political parties claimed that military establishment led by then Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa, through political engineering of Major-General Faiz Hameed ensured the victory for Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf over army's challenger Pakistan Muslim League (N).^[23] Nawaz Sharif openly accuses Hameed of his political downfall.^[24] Faiz Hameed, as DG(C) of ISI was alleged to threaten many lawmakers to switch sides, defect from PMLN and other political parties to PTI.^[25] Parties like PMLQ, MQM, GDA and BAP provided its support to PTI which ultimately brought Imran Khan's PTI to the power in 2018.^{[26][27][14][28][29][23][excessive citations]}

Pakistan played a role of a mediator and a facilitator between United-States and the Taliban to reach the Doha Agreement. Pakistan used its diplomatic channels to promote communication and peacemaking between the two sides. In his capacity as DG ISI, Faiz played a key role in shaping and executing Pakistan’s Afghan policy during Doha talks. It was Faiz Hameed along with special envoy Ambassador Muhammad Sadiq who were central figures in helping patch together the Doha talks between the US and the Taliban. Hameed was also instrumental in engaging with the Taliban both in Doha and in Afghanistan.^{[30][31][32][33]}

During his tenure as Director-General of the ISI, he visited Kabul only a couple of weeks after the Afghan capital fell to the Taliban. When a reporter asked Hameed about what would happen now that the Taliban controlled Afghanistan, Hameed smiled, and famously replied: "Don't worry, everything will be okay."^[34]

Hameed’s visit was pivotal in mitigating internal power rivalry among various Taliban factions. Hameed reportedly mediated among Taliban factions in their process of appointments for key portfolios such as the head of the state or head of the government, choosing Mullah Hasan Akhund instead of Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar while ensuring bulk of ministerial positions for Haqqanis.^{[30][35][36][37]}

Reportedly, as part of backdoor diplomacy between India and Pakistan, Hameed in his role as ISI Chief held several rounds of talks with Indian National Security Advisor Ajit Doval between 2020 and 2021 which led to the renewed pledge of an India-Pakistan ceasefire on the Line of Control in 2021.^[38][39]

In 2018, the Islamabad High Court's (IHC) dismissed judge, Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui, who accused Faiz Hameed of manipulating judicial proceedings in the Panama Papers case involving former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. Siddiqui claimed that Faiz, who was serving as the DG-C of ISI at the time, sought a bench of his preference to hear appeals related to Nawaz Sharif and his family. Various PMLN leaders have repeatedly levelled allegations against then Faiz Hameed of judicial manipulation of the Panama Papers case that led to the removal of Nawaz Sharif as prime minister in 2017. Faiz Hameed's judicial manipulation is believed to be behind Sharif's subsequent imprisonment from 2018 to 2019 and later his self-exile in London from 2019 to 2023.^{[40][41][42][43]}

On January 22, 2024, a five-member larger bench of the Supreme Court, led by Chief Justice (CJ) Qazi Faez Isa, addressed the sacked judge's petition. Notably, the petition was not entertained during the tenures of three former chief justices.^[44]

Prior to the hearing, Faiz Hameed submitted his responses through Khawaja Haris. In defense against the accusations, the former ISI chief refuted the claims made by the former IHC judge, labeling them as "absolutely false, concocted, and based on an afterthought." Faiz clarified that the constitution of benches for hearing appeals fell under the purview of the IHC chief justice, not the petitioner, who was then the senior puisne judge.^[44]

On 12 August 2024, Faiz Hameed had been arrested, according to a statement from the Pakistani military, and charged with corruption. The action is viewed as part of a larger eradication of allies of former prime minister Imran Khan, who chose Faiz Hameed directly for position.^[45] The arrest was noted as unusual for Pakistan, a country in which arrests of military personnel, whether current or former, are rare.^[46]

Faiz Hameed was also at the center of controversy over appointment of his successor as Director-General of ISI in late 2021. Appointment for a new ISI Chief came to surface on Pakistani media in the October 2021 which triggered constitutional rift between civilian and military leadership over the appointment of Hameed's.^[47] It was reported in the media circles that then Prime Minister Imran Khan wanted to retain Hameed as ISI Chief. On 6 October 2021, the Pakistan military's media affairs wing announced the replacement of Hameed with Nadeem Anjum.^[48] After two days, it became apparent on social media that the federal government had yet to issue any formal notification for the appointment of the new Director-General. Rumors became more substantiated when Hameed attended the National Security Committee meeting instead of the expected new Director-General.^[47]

On 13 October 2021, Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry informed media that the process of appointing a new Director-General was in progress, and that the selection is Prime Minister Imran Khan's prerogative. He also noted that the army chief and the prime minister agreed on following correct procedures of appointment according to the Constitution.

Malik Aamir Dogar, the Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Political Affairs, later said in a talk show that PM Imran Khan wanted Hameed to continue as DG ISI for some more months after taking into consideration Hameed's expertise on the situation in Afghanistan. Dogar further stated that during the cabinet meeting, the prime minister stressed that if the army is a respected institution then the PM Office is also a respected one.^[49][50][51]

Hameed is facing potential court-martial following an investigation into his alleged misconduct in the Top City Case. The controversy erupted in 2023 when Moeez Ahmed Khan, the owner of the housing scheme, petitioned Chief Justice Qazi Faez Isa’s bench, alleging a severe breach of legal conduct on the part of Hameed when he was the ISI's Director-General. Khan contended that in May 2017, Rangers and ISI agents conducted an unauthorized raid on the Top City office and the residence of Kunwar Khan, a key figure associated with the scheme. According to the petition, the security forces seized valuable items including 400 tola of gold, diamonds, and cash, claiming they were part of a terrorism investigation.^[52][53][54]

Kunwar Khan accused Hameed of malicious prosecution and alleged that retired ISI brigadiers Naeem Fakhar and Ghaffar exerted undue pressure on him to pay 4 crores in cash and support a private television network. The petition also highlights that several former ISI officials were allegedly involved in an unlawful takeover of the Top City Housing Society.^[55]

In response to these allegations, the Supreme Court of Pakistan directed a thorough investigation to the Ministry of Defence, which led to the military reportedly forming an inquiry committee in April 2024 to investigate allegations of misuse of authority against Hameed.

On 12 August 2024, the military's media wing Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) issued a press release disclosing Hameed's detention, saying that Hameed had been taken into military custody and the process for his court martial has been initiated in connection with the Top City housing scheme scandal.^[56][55] Hameed is the first head of the ISI to undergo a court-martial.^[57]

The Inter-Services Public Relations announced on 15 August that further investigations of certain retired officers and their accomplices for fomenting instability at the behest of and in collusion with vested political interests were continuing and three retired officers were also taken into military custody for their actions prejudicial to military discipline.^[58]

• Pakistan's ISI chief Faiz Hameed visits Kabul for meeting with Taliban (Business Standard, Sept. 5, 2021)
• ISI Chief Gen Faiz Hameed meets Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, Taliban leaders in Kabul (Geo News, Sept. 5, 2021)
• 'Don't worry, everything will be okay': ISI chief during Kabul visit (Dawn News, Sept. 4, 2021)