The fall of former ISI boss General Faiz Hameed is a reminder that in Pakistan, power is not just wielded – it is survived, writes Dr. Syed Eesar Mehdi

For decades, Pakistan has watched powerful men rise on the shifting sands of its political-military landscape. Some ascend quietly, some dramatically. And then, there is Faiz Hameed—the former ISI chief whose rise seemed unstoppable, whose influence seemed untouchable, and whose fall has now become one of the most consequential in Pakistan’s history.

This week, a military court sentenced him to 14 years of rigorous imprisonment—a moment unprecedented not just for the Army, but for a country accustomed to seeing generals retire into comfort, not incarceration. Yet this story is not merely about charges, trials, or official secrets. It is the story of a man whose closeness to former Prime Minister Imran Khan eventually turned into the very reason the system turned against him.

A story of friendship, trust, ambition, and consequences. Pakistan has always been a place where personal loyalties carry political weight, where relationships can shape national trajectories. The bond between Imran Khan and Faiz Hameed was one such relationship—an alliance that once powered a political machine and later became a threat to the new order. And in Pakistan, perceived threats rarely go unpunished. According to the ISPR, Faiz was convicted of violating the Official Secrets Act, engaging in political activities, misusing government resources, and causing wrongful losses to others. But to many Pakistanis, these charges feel like branches of a deeper root: the establishment’s determination to dismantle anything linked to the Imran-Faiz era. To understand the magnitude of Faiz’s fall, one must first understand the man he was—and the man he became in the public imagination.

A fall bound to a friendship

For years, Faiz Hameed was considered one of the most powerful individuals in Pakistan—arguably the most influential after the Army chief himself. Soft-spoken, sharp-minded, and adept at navigating the fog of politics and intelligence, he embodied the secrecy and discipline that the ISI is known for. But........

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