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In Focus
Faiz Hameed sentenced to prison
14 years imprisonment for former ISI chief
On 11 December, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said that former Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) chief, Faiz Hameed, was being sentenced to 14 years rigorous imprisonment by a Field General Court Martial (FGCM) that was initiated against him on 12 August 2024. Hameed was tried on four charges under provisions of the Pakistan Army Act, related to “engaging in political activities, violation of the Official Secrets Act, misuse of authority and government resources, and causing wrongful loss to persons”. The sentence came into effect on 11 December following a 15-month process that started last year. “After lengthy and laborious legal proceedings, the accused has been found guilty on all charges and sentenced to 14 years rigorous imprisonment,” ISPR said. The FGCM was found to have complied with all legal provisions, and Hameed was “afforded all legal rights” and could use his own defence team. Under Section 133B of the Army Act, a sentence exceeding three months handed out by a court-martial may be appealed against in a court of appeals, which should be filed within 40 days from the “date of announcement of finding or sentence or promulgation thereof, whichever is earlier.”
The former lieutenant general was taken into custody in August 2024 following allegations of misconduct by the owner of a private housing society. The military subsequently announced FGCM proceedings against him, and a military court indicted Hameed in December 2024 on three counts - engaging in political activities, violating anti-espionage laws and abusing his authority. At the time, the ISPR stated that an investigation was being conducted into “events related to creating agitation and unrest, leading to multiple incidents including, but not limited to May 9, 2023, for formenting instability at the behest of and in collusion with vested political interests.” 09 May 2023 saw violent protests across the country following the arrest of former prime minister and PTI founder Imran Khan.
Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said that Hameed was also being penalised in the Top City case, in which he was accused of misusing his position to extort money from a private housing society. “Today, the person who crossed the red line has been punished,” he said, adding that Hameed was given “full opportunity” to defend himself. He termed the court’s decision as “historic” and alleged that Hameed had been the PTI’s “political adviser.” Tarar also mentioned that further action could be taken against Hameed. “[...] even beyond events like May 9, there are serious issues that will be investigated further against him. Another probe is underway into the extent and nature of Hameed’s involvement in politics. It’s not hidden that he was advising PTI and trying to weaken the state’s writ,” he added. Meanwhile, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif reacted to Hameed’s sentencing, commenting on a post on X that the “nation will reap the harvest of seeds sown by Faiz Hameed sahib and (former army chief) Bajwa for years.” (Abdullah Momand, “Ex-spymaster Faiz Hameed sentenced to 14 years under Army Act, involvement in political agitation being with separetly: ISPR,” Dawn, 11 December 2025)
Afghanistan-Pakistan
Pakistan insists on written guarantees from Taliban
On 12 December, The Express Tribune reported that Pakistan’s Foreign Office (FO) cautiously welcomed a declaration from more than 1000 Afghan Ulema, issued in Kabul, terming cross-border militant activities as acts of “rebellion.” However, the FO stated that there would likely be no meaningful progress between Pakistan and the Afghan Taliban until the latter have issued written assurances. In addition to viewing the Ulema declaration as implicitly condemning other groups, such as the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), the FO's statement pointed out that historically, Ulema and Taliban authorities in general have not implemented any of their verbal or political commitments. Therefore, for Pakistan to consider this latest development to be significant, it must translate into formal, written guarantees from the Taliban's leadership, ideally within the broader context of mediation with friendly states.
The current stance is rooted in Pakistan having ongoing negotiations with the Taliban in Kabul, which were made possible by Kabul facilitating several rounds of communication and an initial ceasefire agreement. Just before a suicide attack in North Waziristan that killed seven Pakistani soldiers and injured 13 others on August 24, Pakistan and Afghanistan had reached an agreement to extend their ceasefire. In this act of violence, a group of militants rammed an explosive-laden vehicle into a military camp, killing six of themselves. At the time, a group of Pakistani and Afghan delegations were preparing to meet in Doha for peace talks, with the Pakistani delegation already in Doha, while the Afghan delegation was on its way following the expiration of a newly established 48-hour ceasefire after nearly a week of intense fighting along the border. Zabihullah Mujahid, the spokesperson for the Afghan Taliban, confirmed that the Taliban received orders from their leadership in Kabul to adhere to the ceasefire, as long as Pakistan did not conduct military operations against the Taliban. Both nations are currently involved in an intense diplomatic quarrel due to the ongoing conflicts and accusations regarding militant activity. In November, delegations of both countries met in Istanbul to accelerate the peace process, but these talks failed to produce a comprehensive peace deal. The Pakistani government is demanding that the Afghan government take action to control the operations of the Pakistani Taliban operating from Afghanistan, while the Afghan government is accusing the Pakistani government of spreading lies about the Taliban and supporting the spread of military operations against the Taliban.
The FO's most recent briefing implies that they consider the Afghan Taliban's refusal to accept aid provided through humanitarian convoys, which were organised through Pakistan, to be unprecedented behaviour for a government that has significant economic and humanitarian difficulties. This backlash has been part of a greater trend of Pakistan's hardening position towards Afghanistan and has shown that now, as with border management and political engagement, trade facilitation will increasingly become conditional on the Afghan Government's promise of reducing or eliminating anti-Pakistan militancy and formalising its commitments to Pakistan. Therefore, Islamabad's call for written guarantees represents both mistrust of the past commitments made by the Taliban and an effort to change the nature of their relationship from a non-structured or informal basis of religious or political motivation to a more accountable basis for both parties through a structured engagement process. (“Pakistan insists on written guarantees from Taliban,” The Express Tribune, 12 December 2025; “Pakistan and Afghanistan agree to new ceasefire after more than a week of deadly clashes,” CNN, 19 October 2025; “Truce ‘broken’ says Taliban after Pakistani strikes hit Afghanistan,” The Indian Express, 17 October 2025)
In Brief
SOCIETY
Basant for three days in Lahore
On 12 December, as reported by Dawn, Azma Bokhari, Punjab’s Information and Culture Minister, announced that Basant will be celebrated in Lahore only. It will take place for three days from 6 to 8 February and will be governed by strict regulations introduced through the Punjab Kite Flying Ordinance 2025. She clarified that there would be no kite flying permitted outside these dates or in any other district, adding that the festival may be expanded across Punjab next year if people in Lahore demonstrate responsible behaviour. The government has mandated QR-coded kites, licensed sellers, and registered manufacturers to ban the use of hazardous metallic strings that previously caused numerous deaths and injuries, before the statewide ban in 2007. In addition, free safety antennas will be distributed to motorcyclists, while cultural programmes highlighting traditional music, food, and festivities will be organised to mark the revival of the festival. (“Basant for 3 days and in Lahore only”, Dawn, 12 December 2025)
ECONOMY
Exporters are hit as transporters' strike enters fifth day
On 12 December, Dawn reported that the strike had entered its fifth day, during a period when the country’s exports were in negative growth for four consecutive months. The strike has disrupted the entire supply chain, especially vegetables and fruits, which have been sitting idle at depots awaiting export to the international market. The country’s average textile exports are at USD 1.5 billion, which is about USD 50 million a day. Kurram Mukhtar, Patron-in-Chief of Pakistan Textile Exporters Association, told Dawn that this disruption to the supply chains has impacted raw material movement, industrial production, and port operations, as well as increasing the overall economic losses, which affected multiple sectors nationwide. The strike brought the manufacturing sector to a halt. Mukhtar said: “This situation is causing irreparable damage to Pakistan’s reputation as a reliable sourcing destination and poses a direct threat to our already fragile economic stability." A senior customs officer had said that there are no issues on their side as 87 per cent of export consignments had been cleared through green channels and moved directly to vessels, while downplaying concerns over delays caused by the strike. The Chairman of All Pakistan Textile Mills Association wrote a letter to the Chief Minister of Punjab, Maryam Nawaz, urging her to intervene for an immediate resolution of the strike and to restore goods movements to facilitate stable and predictable logistic conditions to support the flow of export goods. (“Exporters turn panicky as transporters strike enters fifth day,” Dawn, 12 December 2025)
IMF imposes 11 conditions as Pakistan faces expanded reform demands
On 12 December, the Express Tribune had reported that Pakistan had been struck with the 11 new conditions of the IMF (making a total of 64 conditions in only 18 months), with the new conditions focusing on corruption risks, elite capture in the sugar industry, remittance charges, losses in the power sector, and FBR inefficiency. The staff level report by the IMF obliges Pakistan to have its asset declarations of high-ranking federal civil servants released by December next year, extend it to provinces, provide complete access to banks, and come up with a corruption-reduction plan of 10 high-risk departments with the NAB playing the lead. An empowering provincial anti-corruption agency, having fully assessed the remittance costs and payment barriers by May, and a study of the bottlenecks in the local currency bond market by September are other conditions. In order to end sugar-sector elite capture, Pakistan needs a national liberalisation policy by June, as well as to complete a detailed FBR reform roadmap, introduce at least three priority reforms, and publish a medium-term tax strategy by December next year. (“IMF imposes 11 new conditions to Pakistan’s $7 billion bailout package,” The Express Tribune, 12 December 2025)
SECURITY
Terrorist Attack on the Bannu police checkpost, injuring five officers
On 12 December, Dawn reported that, on Thursday night, terrorists attacked the Police checkpost in Shaik Landak, injuring five police officers. Kashif Nawaz, spokesperson for the regional police officers, stated that the Fitab al Khawarij terrorists were the ones to blame for this vicious attack. Based on the statement, the gallant officers, with the help of armed tribesmen and members of the peace committee, acted promptly and neutralised the situation. Amidst the three-hour-long crossfire, several terrorists had been killed and injured. Situations before the attack were already tense due to the quadcopter terrorist attack, which injured seven people, including minors. There has been a spike in the surge of terror activities predominantly in KP and Balochistan following the TTP ending a ceasefire with the government, dating back to November 2022. In October, CRSS stated that violence had surged in the country over three months due to a spike in militant attacks and intensified counter-terrorism operations. (“5 cops injured in late-night terrorist attack on police checkpost in Bannu,” Dawn, 12 December 2025)
EXTERNAL
Pakistan and Turkmenistan step towards strengthening their Trade and Economic ties
On 12 December, as reported by The Express Tribune, Prime Minister Shebaz, accompanied by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar, Energy Minister Awais Ahmed Khan Leghari, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar and other members of the cabinet and senior government officials arrived in Ashgabat to attend the International Forum on Peace and Trust - International Day of Neutrality and the 30th anniversary of the Permanent Neutrality of Turkmenistan for expressing his resolve to further strengthen bilateral ties between the two countries, particularly through enhanced trade and economic engagement. The PM met with President Berdimuhamedov of Turkmenistan, Gratifying the Turkmen leadership and government for supporting Pakistani nationals to evacuate from Iran during the Iran-Israel war. He even reaffirmed Pakistan’s desire to enhance connectivity with Turkmenistan through land and sea, conveniently placing ports in Karachi and Gwadar for Turkmen people to enhance their outreach to South Asia and beyond. (“Pakistan, Turkmenistan agree to strengthen trade, economic ties,” The Express Tribune, 12 December 2025)
Editorials/Opinions
Politics & Governance
Adeel Wahid, “The dichotomies,” Dawn, 12 December 2025
“A battle can be won or lost on how the issue in a dispute is framed. In the aftermath of the 26th and 27th Amendments to the Constitution, different concepts can be invoked to make sense of the reality around us. The challenge, however, is that in framing an issue, one ought to be able to grasp the core of what is at stake. Otherwise, it can be that the two sides take positions and dig in their heels, without coming close to addressing the central issue. There is a need, therefore, to explore the dichotomy that best explains and captures the essence of what exactly it is that divides the proponents (or apologists) of the amendments from those who bemoan them. That we were to move towards making available to us forums where, when our dignity is trampled upon, we can claim that we are being wronged, and hope that in this world too, there would be recourse. And this is, essentially, the primary issue at stake, that bowing before power has now been mandated by law.”
https://www.dawn.com/news/1960588/the-dichotomies
Shahzad Chaudhry, “Dealing with the PTI,” The Express Tribune, 12 December 2025
“We are talking time here. The time that a regime or a government in power needs to get things in order, ensure stability, and get the system back on track. If that be so, and not the man who somehow consumes our existence, we have that in place; he is behind bars under various indictments and sentences, while his activities can be managed and regulated by controlling his life as it might permit our national objectives to proceed unimpeded. Even if we were to be large-hearted enough to allow a few visitors — again under our supervision and control — there is little that this man could export from jail in terms of policies and politics that his leaderless party could garner. So shorn is the PTI of cohesion and integrity and singleness of purpose among them. Politics without context is irrelevant, and when you take the context away, the political guidance can only be misplaced. And no, the state is not that weak to be upstaged by misdirected followers. Of it, there should be no fear. The state is far too omnipresent not to know and keep the order in place. One way to repair the rupture is to let the dust settle. Instead, we tend to stir a storm every day. Politics must function within its own circle, where political parties alone interact and compete. The less we spotlight the unsavoury from any other orbit, the less shall we create a possibility of an uncalled-for conflict when the state of the nation stands at its most precarious.”
https://tribune.com.pk/story/2581711/dealing-with-the-pti
Security
Mohammad Ali Babakhel, “Weather & terrorism,” Dawn, 12 December 2025
“Weather may impact the frequency, tactics, planning, location, logistics and intensity of terrorism and CT operations. Globally, terrorists attack in favourable weather, adjusting strategies according to logistics, mobility and visibility. Drought or floods can spawn conditions for radicalisation; dry weather enables ambushes, IEDs and coordinated attacks. Militant movement increases in mountainous areas in summer. Melting snows in parts of KP (including former Fata) and Balochistan aid militants, especially along the western border, to regroup. Better weather enhances visibility and aids infiltration and attacks. In winter, militants’ mobility is hindered in hilly areas; they are either dormant or target urban centres, opting especially for extortion and kidnapping for ransom, or collaborating with organised criminal groups in arms and narcotics peddling. LEAs’ CT strategies must integrate preparedness and climate adaptation; use climate data to forecast higher terrorist activity periods; improve disaster response to curb militant exploitation; reduce recruitment risks; and collaborate with other agencies, including LGs. This will help forecast resource needs and aid better operation planning.”
https://www.dawn.com/news/1960585/weather-terrorism
Economy
Zafar Mirza, “Health governance & IMF report,” Dawn, 12 December 2025
“Fixing governance issues in the health system has its limits. Still, one should not give up and be mindful of the larger context. One cannot build an island of good governance in the health sector alone when it is surrounded by an ocean of bad governance on a high tide where undressed big boys are ski boarding. The IMF’s recent damning report, Pakistan: Governance and Corruption Diagnostic Assessment, explains the high tide. Apart from giving staggering numbers for the termite of corruption, which has built its mounds and subterranean nests in our society, it also raises a shrill cry over the absence of any meaningful reforms, which each of the four IMF programmes in the last 10 years have flagged. As citizens of the state, health professionals or otherwise, it is imperative to understand the larger extractive political system, the issues of governance and corruption, develop a collective consciousness and take action. Without understanding the macro, the micro cannot be fixed. Before this IMF report fades away, society and citizen groups in all sectors need to read it and relate to it through their own lives and the sectors in which they work.”
https://www.dawn.com/news/1960587/health-governance-imf-report
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