ISLAMABAD (AP) — A Pakistani court on Saturday 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 Zainab Mazari and her husband Hadi Ali Chattha were arrested in Islamabad, according to court documents.
The couple appeared briefly via video link but boycotted the hearing, prompting the court to conclude the trial and deliver the verdict. Family and friends denounced the ruling.
The court verdict said Mazari had posted multiple tweets in recent years that “portrayed the agenda” of the outlawed Baloch separatist group and Pakistani Taliban.
The case stems from a complaint filed in August 2025 with the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency, alleging the couple used social media to malign the state and its security institutions. They were formally indicted last October and had repeatedly refused to appear in court.
In his verdict, the judge mentioned the complaint which alleged that Mazari “consistently disseminated highly offensive, misleading and anti-state contents on social media”, with the “active connivance” of her husband.
The prosecution also accused Mazari of propagating a “narrative that aligned with hostile terrorist groups and proscribed organizations and individuals.”
The couple, who were formally indicted last October and had repeatedly refused to appear in court, denied the changes.
International and domestic rights groups condemned the arrest of Mazari and her husband and called for their immediate release.
Amnesty International said in a statement Friday that the couple’s detention marked “the latest escalation in a sustained campaign of judicial harassment and intimidation by the Pakistani authorities.”
It said Mazari and Chattha were arrested while on their way to a court hearing, with eyewitnesses reporting that law enforcement officials used excessive force. No reasons were given for the arrests at the time, raising serious concerns about the couple’s safety.
Human rights activists in Pakistan have increasingly come under pressure from the government, which has been cracking down on criticism and dissent. Mazari and Chattha often represented journalists, political figures and human rights activists who had been detained by the security forces without formal charges or court appearances.
Mazari is the daughter of Shireen Mazari, Pakistan’s former human rights minister who served under imprisoned former Prime Minister Imran Khan. She denounced the verdict on X as “totally illegal.”
Pakistan’s Information Minister Attaullah Tarar praised the verdict against the pair. “As you sow, so shall you reap!” he wrote on X, adding that they had been sentenced under the cyber laws.
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