A Pakistani court has handed down a ten-year prison sentence to two prominent human rights lawyers, Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir and her husband, Hadi Ali Chattha, under the country's stringent anti-terrorism legislation. The conviction stems from allegations that the couple removed security barriers during a visit by the England cricket team, an act Judge Tahir Abbas Sipra interpreted as a deliberate attempt to incite terror and endanger public safety. The pair, who have consistently denied these claims, argue that the verdict is a retaliatory move meant to silence their advocacy and intimidate others who challenge state oppression.

This sentencing follows a protracted legal struggle characterized by repeated arrests and shifting charges against the couple. After being initially detained in 2024 and later released, they faced further imprisonment in 2026 over controversial social media activity—a conviction that was eventually suspended by the Supreme Court before police rearrested them on these fresh charges. International human rights organizations, including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, have roundly condemned the legal proceedings, labeling the government's tactics as an abuse of the justice system designed to penalize peaceful dissent and dismantle the work of legal professionals fighting for justice in Pakistan.