ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — The chief of the Pakistani Army appointed a new head of the powerful Inter-Services Intelligence, the nation's top spy organization, Tuesday in a move that consolidated his control over crucial espionage activities.
The new spy chief, Lt. Gen. Ahmed Shujaa Pasha, has experience as a commander in United Nations peacekeeping and counter-insurgency operations, according to a Pakistani expert in military affairs. He replaced Lt. Gen. Nadeem Taj.
The appointment of General Pasha was made by Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, who became head of the army last November when President Pervez Musharraf stepped down from his military role. Mr. Musharraf resigned in August under threats of impeachment.
General Kayani has been deliberately making his mark on the army, and Tuesday's announcement of the new spy chief, along with the appointments of five new senior generals, was another sign of his remaking of the top echelon of the military, traditionally Pakistan's elite institution.
For the last two years, General Pasha was in charge of security operations in the tribal region bordering Afghanistan where Al Qaeda and the Taliban have gained virtual control.
American Special Forces recently crossed from Afghanistan into Waziristan in the tribal area on a raid against Al Qaeda insurgents. The operation sparked a public repudiation of Washington from General Kayani as a breach of Pakistani sovereignty.
As head of the intelligence agency, General Pasha will be dealing directly with the Central Intelligence Agency about Washington's concerns over Taliban and Al Qaeda forces staging attacks against American troops in Afghanistan.
The appointment of General Pasha comes two months after the new civilian government tried but failed to wrest control of the spy agency from the army, which has always run it.
General Kayani's announcement reaffirmed the military's institutional control of the I.S.I., the English-language newspaper Dawn said in Tuesday's edition.
A few months ago, I wrote about the early stages of the conflict in Ukraine through the lens of Sun Tzu’s The Art of War. While it appears likely that the war will carry on into the foreseeable future, enough time has passed for us to make an honest assessment of each side’s relative […]
The Ukrainian Army has made dramatic strides in the last few weeks. Ukraine’s tactical commanders have outfoxed their Russian counterparts, and by issuing a feint towards the south the UA has been able to earn substantial gains in the north of their country. The impact of these efforts have been compounded by the steady stream […]
In mid-May the Irish political party, Sinn Féin, won the plurality of seats in the Northern Ireland Assembly. Many American readers might not fully understand the significance of Sinn Féin’s political victory- but rest assured that subjects of the United Kingdom and a wide range of political movements the world over have heard the message […]
The first wave of the Russian offensive in Ukraine has fallen short of Russian autocrat Vladmir Putin’s ambitions. Most analysts deduced that Putin had hoped to achieve a decapitation strike of the Ukrainian government- taking Kiev and replacing Ukrainian President Vladimir Zolinski with a pro-Kremlin voice. Kiev has been threatened repeatedly through the course of […]
On the weekend of March 26th, the notorious MS-13 gang went on a massive killing spree in El Salvador which left more than 70 people dead by Sunday. Even for a country where powerful gangs hold massive sway, this recent tragedy stands out considering that it was the bloodiest day on record since the civil […]
