Army’s key posts change hands
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ISLAMABAD: The army announced on Thursday a major reshuffle that brought in new chief of general staff and head of Strategic Plans Division (SPD), which controls the country’s nuclear arsenal.
The changes became necessary because of the impending retirement of four lieutenant generals. Five major generals were promoted to the rank of lieutenant general.
According to an ISPR statement, Lt Gen Zubair Mahmood Hayat has been appointed as the army’s new Chief of General Staff (CGS).
He replaces Lt Gen Ishfaq Nadeem Ahmad, who has been posted as Corps Commander II Corps based in Multan.
The CGS is assigned the operational and intelligence matters at the General Headquarters with directorates of Military Operations and Military Intelligence falling under his purview.
Before becoming the CGS, Gen Hayat was director general of SPD. At SPD, he has been replaced by Lt Gen Mazhar Jamil, who was previously the military secretary at the GHQ.
The SPD, established in 2001, serves as the secretariat of the National Command Authority (NCA) which oversees research, development, production and deployment of nuclear weapons.
In this capacity, SPD executes policies of the NCA. The director general of SPD is also the secretary of the NCA.
Gen Ishfaq has replaced Lt Gen Abid Pervez in Multan, because the latter is retiring.
Meanwhile, president of the National Defence University Lt Gen Javed Ramdhay has been posted as commander of the 31 Corps based in Bahawalpur. He replaces Lt Gen Javed Iqbal, who is retiring.
Lt Gen Anwar Ali Hyder has been appointed as president of the NDU. He was one of the five two-star major generals who have been elevated to the status of three-star generals. He was earlier posted as a director general in the army chief’s secretariat.
Others who have been promoted are Maj Gen Omar Mahmood Hayat, Maj Gen Zafar Iqbal Malik, Maj Gen Javed Mehmood Bukhari, Maj Gen Anwar Ali Hyder and Maj Gen Shahid Baig Mirza.
The generals who are retiring this month are Lt Gen Javed Iqbal, Commander of Bahawalpur Corps; Lt Gen Abid Pervez, Commander of Multan Corps; Lt Gen Muhammad Asif, Director General of Joint Staff at the Joint Staffs Headquarters, Rawalpindi; and Lt Gen Muhammad Ahsan Mahmood, Chairman of the Pakistan Ordnance Factories, Wah.
Published in Dawn, April 10th, 2015
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