Pak Army transfers former ISI chief in reshuffle
August 08, 2022 22:26
In a major reshuffle on Monday, the Pakistan Army transferred former ISI chief, Lieutenant General Faiz Hameed, and appointed him as the Bahawalpur Corps Commander.
Hameed was serving as Peshawar Corps Commander and overseeing the talks with the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), which are being facilitated by the Taliban regime in Afghanistan.
The military's media wing, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), said in a statement on Monday that Lt Gen Sardar Hassan Azhar Hayat was posted as the new Peshawar Corps Commander.
He was promoted to the rank of lieutenant general and appointed as the military secretary in 2020.
In another high-profile appointment, Lt Gen Khalid Zia has been appointed as the military secretary of the Army.
Earlier, Lt Gen Asif Ghafoor was appointed as the Commander XII Corps (Quetta) last week. The appointment was made after the tragic death of Lt Gen Sarfraz Ali in a helicopter crash.
The transfer of Lt Gen Faiz Hameed was serving as the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) chief when he was transferred and appointed as the Peshawar corps commander in October 2021. Lt Gen Nadeem Ahmed Anjum replaced him as the spy chief of the country.
Hameed made the headlines when he was spotted in a Kabul hotel after the Taliban took over, giving air to speculation about Pakistan playing a role in ironing out differences among the top rebel leaders over the spoils of their victory.
He also visited Kabul this year to take part in talks with the TTP as Pakistan tried to tackle home-grown militancy through a dialogue. As head of ISI's internal security wing, he played a role in ending a protest by a Sunni extremist group in 2017.
The Tehreek-i-Labaik Pakistan had laid siege to the capital Islamabad over the issue of alleged changes by the then government of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz in the oath of lawmakers who were required to swear that they believed in the finality of the prophet of Islam.
Hameed is also known as being close to former Prime Minister Imran Khan who had refused to approve the move by the army to transfer him as Peshawar Corps Commander. The refusal apparently soured his (Khan) ties with the powerful military and, according to some accounts, it ultimately led to his ouster in April this year.
It is also believed that Khan was planning to promote Hammed as a four-star general and appoint him as the new army chief after the completion of his term by the incumbent in November. However, Khan in some interviews rejected the reports by saying that he never thought along those lines.
The transfers and postings in the Pakistan Army are considered as a routine affair but due to the dominant position of the armed forces in the country's politics, every high CVXD-profile appointment is keenly watched. -- PTI
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