ISLAMABAD: A probe could have been avoided against Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Asad Durrani if he had sought permission from the armed forces by detailing the content written in his latest book which upset the military, a Pakistan Army spokesperson said.
“Had he taken an NOC (No Objection Certificate) for the book, all of this would not have happened,” said Director General of Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Maj. Gen. Asif Ghafoor in a press briefing in Rawalpindi.
Ex-ISPR officer (Retd.) Col. Baseer Haider told Arab News: “If the book’s content involves the army, the person is supposed to get permission or NOC, show the draft before publishing, remove any observations” of the army.
It is unclear if this procedure is a rule or if it also applies to army veterans turned political and defense analysts who have commended and criticized army officials in the media over the handling of past incidents and events. Durrani’s book has also taken a jab at individuals rather than the military establishment.
The Pakistan Army immediately ordered “a formal court of inquiry” against Durrani last month over claims in his 255-page co-authored book “The Spy Chronicles: RAW ISI and the Illusion of Peace.” Durrani appeared before a military review panel and was subsequently barred from traveling overseas pending an army decision pinned to its probe.
The book makes a string of startling claims on subjects ranging from the Kashmir dispute and India-Pakistan relations to intelligence agencies and Pakistan’s foreign policy. The three-star retired general, who served as chief of Pakistan’s prime intelligence agency, the Inter-Service Intelligence (ISI), commented mainly on events that occurred after his tenure.
Durrani has maintained his silence, refusing to clarify how he was able to obtain classified information. He has on two counts told Arab News he is “not willing to talk on this subject with anyone.”
The book is written in a casual dialogue format between Durrani and former Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) chief Amarjit Singh Dulat, and moderated by Indian journalist Aditya Sinha.
The army made it clear that Durrani will be held accountable. “We are all human, we make mistakes. But when you make mistakes, you suffer the consequences. The Pakistan Army has never forgiven any mistake, whether made by a soldier or a general. What will happen to Durrani will be in front of you,” emphasized Ghafoor, who pointed to the former general’s tainted retirement and a court case stemming from the 1990s against Durrani and ex-Army chief Mirza Aslam Beg for manipulating and meddling with politics while in command.
However, Durrani is not the first retired military officer to pen a revealing book. Former President and ex-army chief Gen. Pervez Musharraf authored “In the Line of Fire” and revealed that during his rule Pakistan rounded up hundreds of alleged terrorists, extraditing them to the US, which earned unspecified bounties totaling millions of dollars.
Musharraf apparently had no NOC and his revelations compromised the army and the country’s image globally, causing the wrath of human rights organizations that slammed the military. The report titled “Human Rights Ignored in the War on Terror,” accused Pakistan of human rights violations for monetary and other gains from the US and its allies.
Col. Baseer deflected and separated responsibility of Musharraf’s action from the army and approval for his book. “He was the (army) chief and president also, therefore he didn’t need permission from anyone. He had to do everything and give permissions” which likely gave Durrani and those who have written before him the impression that approvals are not necessary.
However, Durrani faces a serious military case judging by the actions and tone adopted by the army. If the court shows that the former spymaster’s claims compromised national security, he could face charges of treason.
“The possibility of Durrani being court-martialed is very high,” said Khalid Mohammed, director general of the Islamabad-based think-tank Command Eleven, which works closely with the armed forces.
“If convicted, he would be the first retired officer to be held accountable over violations of military law,” Mohammed told Arab News.
Ex-spy chief who co-wrote controversial book should have sought clearance, says Pakistan Army
Ex-spy chief who co-wrote controversial book should have sought clearance, says Pakistan Army
- Durrani should have sought permission
- Former army chief Musharraf apparently never obtained permission for writing book
How decades of deforestation led to catastrophic Sumatra floods
- At least 1.4m hectares of forest in flood-affected provinces were lost to deforestation since 2016
- Indonesian officials vow to review permits, investigate companies suspected of worsening the disasters
JAKARTA: About a week after floods and landslides devastated three provinces in Indonesia’s Sumatra island, Rubama witnessed firsthand how the deluge left not only debris and rubble but also log after log of timber.
They were the first thing that she saw when she arrived in the Beutong Ateuh Banggalang district of Aceh, where at least two villages were wiped out by floodwaters.
“We saw these neatly cut logs moving down the river. Some were uprooted from the ground, but there are logs cut into specific sizes. This shows that the disaster in Aceh, in Sumatra, it’s all linked to illegal forestry practices,” Rubama, empowerment manager at Aceh-based environmental organization HAKA, told Arab News.
Monsoon rains exacerbated by a rare tropical storm caused flash floods and triggered landslides across Aceh, North Sumatra, and West Sumatra in late November, killing 969 people and injuring more than 5,000 as of Wednesday, as search efforts continue for 252 others who remain missing.
In the worst-hit areas, residents were cut off from power and communication for days, as floodwater destroyed bridges and torrents of mud from landslides blocked roads, hampering rescue efforts and aid delivery to isolated villages.
When access to the affected regions gradually improved and the scale of the disaster became clearer, clips of washed-up trunks and piles of timber crashing into residential areas circulated widely online, showing how the catastrophic nature of the storm was compounded by deforestation.
“This is real, we’re seeing the evidence today of what happens when a disaster strikes, how deforestation plays a major role in the aftermath,” Rubama said.
For decades, vast sections of Sumatra’s natural forest have been razed and converted for mining, palm oil plantations and pulpwood farms.
Around 1.4 million hectares of forest in Aceh, North Sumatra and West Sumatra were lost to deforestation between 2016 and 2025 alone, according to Indonesian environmental group WALHI, citing operations by 631 permit-holding companies.
Deforestation in Sumatra stripped away natural defenses that once absorbed rainfall and stabilized soil, making the island more vulnerable to extreme weather, said Riandra Purba, executive director of WALHI’s chapter in North Sumatra.
Purba said the Sumatra floods should serve as a “serious warning” for the government to issue permits more carefully.
“Balancing natural resource management requires a sustainable approach. We must not sacrifice natural benefits for the financial benefit of a select few,” he told Arab News.
“(The government) must evaluate all the environmental policies in the region … (and) implement strict monitoring, including law enforcement that will create a deterrent effect to those who violate existing laws.”
In Batang Toru, one of the worst-hit areas in North Sumatra where seven companies operate, hundreds of hectares had been cleared for gold mining and energy projects, leaving slopes exposed and riverbeds choked with sediment.
When torrential rains hit last month, rivers in the area were swollen with runoff and timber, while villages were buried or swept away.
As public outrage grew in the wake of the Sumatra floods, Indonesian officials, including Environment Minister Hanif Faisol Nurofiq, have moved to review existing permits and investigate companies suspected of worsening the disaster.
“Our focus is to ensure whether company activities are influencing land stability and (increasing) risks of landslides or floods,” Nurofiq told Indonesian magazine Tempo on Saturday.
Sumatra’s natural forest cover stood at about 11.6 million hectares as of 2023, or about 24 percent of the island’s total area, falling short of the 30 to 33 percent forest coverage needed to maintain ecological balance.
The deadly floods and landslides in Sumatra also highlighted the urgency of disaster mitigation in Indonesia, especially amid the global climate crisis, said Kiki Taufik, forest campaigner at Greenpeace Indonesia.
Over two weeks since floods and landslides inundated communities in Sumatra, a few villages remain isolated and over 800,000 people are still displaced.
“This tropical cyclone, Senyar, in theory, experts said that it has a very low probability of forming near the equator, but what we have seen is that it happened, and this is caused by rapid global warming … which is triggering hydrometeorological disasters,” Taufik told Arab News.
“The government needs to give more attention, and even more budget allocation, to mitigate disaster risks … Prevention is much more important than (disaster) management, so this must be a priority for the government.”
