US EditionPakistani human rights lawyers jailed for 17 years over social media posts
The Islamabad court convicted Imaan Mazari and her husband under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act for social media posts accused of promoting militant agendas, sentencing each to 17 years.
- On Saturday, a Pakistani court sentenced human rights lawyers Zainab Mazari and Hadi Ali Chattha to 17 years each, Judge Afzal Majoka announced a day after their arrest in Islamabad.
- The case began after a complaint filed in August 2025 with the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency , and prosecutors pursued charges under cyber laws as authorities said the posts aligned with the outlawed Baloch separatist group and Pakistani Taliban.
- Mazari and Chattha often represented detained journalists, political figures and human rights activists; they were formally indicted last October, repeatedly refused to appear in court and denied the charges.
- Rights groups condemned the arrests and called for immediate release, while Pakistan's Information Minister Attaullah Tarar praised the verdict and family and friends denounced the ruling.
- The case comes amid growing pressure on human rights activists and involves Zainab Mazari, daughter of Shireen Mazari, with no reasons given for the arrests and eyewitnesses reporting excessive force.
70 Articles
70 Articles
Two Pakistan human rights lawyers jailed for 17 years
Islamabad: A Pakistani court on Saturday, January 24, sentenced two human rights lawyers to 17 years in prison each over social media posts the authorities claimed were hostile to the state and its security institutions. Judge Afzal Majoka announced the verdict a day after Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir and her husband Hadi Ali Chattha were arrested in Islamabad, according to court documents. The couple appeared briefly via video link but boycotted t…
Lawyers, activists react to Imaan, Hadi's conviction
Political parties, parliamentarians and members of the legal community condemned the conviction and sentencing of human rights lawyer Imaan Mazari and her husband, Advocate Hadi Ali Chattha, on Saturday, describing the verdict as “unfair” and a “grave miscarriage of justice”. A district and sessions court in Islamabad on Saturday convicted the two in a case related to controversial social media posts and sentenced them to 17 years in prison. The…
Pakistani court sentences human rights lawyers to 17 years over social media posts
Pakistani human rights lawyers Zainab Mazari and Hadi Ali Chattha were sentenced to 17 years over social media posts deemed anti-state, drawing condemnation from international rights groups and activists.
Pakistan sentences human rights activist to 17 years over anti-state posts
By Asif Shahzad ISLAMABAD, Jan 24 (Reuters) – A Pakistani court on Saturday convicted a human rights activist and lawyer, Imaan Mazari and her husband on charges of anti-state social media posts, handing them sentences totalling 17 years, a court order said. “The prosecution has been able to prove its case,” said the court order seen by Reuters. Mazari, a vocal critic of Pakistan’s powerful military, and her husband were convicted on three co…
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