Pakistan rights activist Imaan Mazari and husband jailed for 10 years | Human Rights News
Couple Sentenced to 10 Years on Terrorism Charges in Pakistan
Published on October 29, 2026
An antiterrorism court in Pakistan sentenced prominent human rights lawyers Imaan Mazari and her husband, Hadi Ali Chattha, to ten years in prison for terrorism-related offenses. The verdict was announced on Thursday by Judge Tahir Abbas Sipra after a trial conducted within Adiala prison in Rawalpindi.
The court found the couple guilty of endangering the security of the England and Wales Cricket team during an incident in October 2024. According to the judge, the couple’s actions were intended to instill a sense of terror, referencing their removal of road barriers along a route scheduled for the visiting cricket team. However, the ruling acknowledged that the incident was “a very common nature ordinary type of incident apparently of removal of a barrier.”
Mazari and Chattha were indicted on October 7 on charges of obstructing police and inciting public unrest, both of which they denied. In statements provided to Reuters, the couple described themselves as “prisoners of conscience,” alleging that they were being targeted for their advocacy of human rights.
Their defense document asserted that the couple was being used as an example to intimidate others who challenge government oppression.
Relatives Critique Judicial Process
Shireen Mazari, Imaan Mazari’s mother and a former human rights minister under former Prime Minister Imran Khan, criticized the proceedings as a “sham trial lacking due process.” Mazari claimed that the couple was denied the right to legal representation and did not receive essential legal documents. She indicated that they plan to appeal the verdict to the Supreme Court.
Amnesty International condemned the convictions, labeling them as indicative of failings within Pakistan’s judicial system. Yasmine Ahmend, a spokesperson for the organization, stated that the judiciary failed to uphold the principles of justice and the right to a fair trial, asserting that the charges against Mazari and Chattha were politically motivated.
The couple has been in custody since January 23 in connection with a different case regarding their social media activity. They were initially sentenced to 17 years under Pakistan’s Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act, legislation criticized for suppressing dissent. Although the Supreme Court later suspended these sentences, the couple was re-arrested the same day on the new charges.
Babu Ram Pant, Amnesty International’s Deputy Regional Director for South Asia, remarked that their re-arrest underscores the politically motivated nature of the accusations, exemplifying the authorities’ willingness to misuse the legal system against dissenting voices.
Pakistan’s law minister, Azam Nazeer Tarar, has maintained that the country’s judiciary operates independently.
