Pakistan military courts sentence 25 civilians over violence

By Islamuddin Sajid

ISLAMABAD (AA) - Military courts in Pakistan have sentenced 25 civilians over their alleged involvement in riots and attacks on army installations in May last year, the military said on Saturday.

In a statement, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the Pakistan Army's media wing, said that in light of the Supreme Court's recent decision, the Field General Court Martial, in first phase, sentenced 25 accused after examining all evidence, affording all legal rights to the accused.

"All convicts retain the right to appeal and other legal recourses, as guaranteed by the law and the Constitution," said ISPR.

The military courts awarded sentences from two years to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment to 25 civilians, mostly supporters of former Prime Minister Imran Khan's party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).

Around 85 civilians have been in military custody since May 2023.

The arrests followed violent incidents on May 9, which included attacks on military installations after the arrest of former Prime Minister Khan in a corruption case.

"Promulgation of the sentences of remaining accused is also being done and will be announced shortly as and when the due process is complete," the military said.

The latest development came after Pakistan's top court on Dec. 13 conditionally permitted military courts to issue verdicts in cases involving civilians arrested for their alleged role in violence in May last year.

However, according to the court order, these decisions will remain contingent on the Supreme Court's final ruling in the pending cases.

In October last year, the Supreme Court declared the trial of civilians in military courts as "unconstitutional."

Subsequently, the government filed an appeal against the ruling, urging the top court to permit the continuation of military trials for civilians.

On Dec. 13 last year, the court conditionally suspended its October decision until a final verdict on the intra-court appeals.

Previously, Pakistan established military courts for suspected terrorists to trial them for certain terrorism-related offenses in 2015 which continued until 2019.

The military courts have convicted 641 people, two were acquitted and 56 people hanged after trials, according to an International Commission of Jurists report.