Pakistan picks Lt Gen Muhammad Asim Malik to head ISI spy agency 

The picture shared by Pakistani state media, PTV News, on September 23, 2024, shows the newly appointed head of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), Lt. Gen. Muhammad Asim Malik. (PTV News)
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Updated 23 September 2024
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Pakistan picks Lt Gen Muhammad Asim Malik to head ISI spy agency 

  • Malik, currently serving as army’s Adjudicate General, will take over on Sept. 30
  • New spy chief will replace Lt. Gen. Nadeem Anjum, who was appointed in 2021

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has appointed Lt. Gen. Asim Malik as the new head of its powerful Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency, the country’s state television said on Monday, who will assume charge of his office on Sept. 30. 

The army is arguably the most influential institution in Pakistan, with the military having ruled the country for about half of its 77-year history since independence from Britain and enjoying extensive powers even under civilian administrations.

Malik is currently serving as an adjutant general at the General Headquarters (GHQ) in Pakistan’s garrison city of Rawalpindi, the Pakistan Television (PTV) News said. He will be replacing Lt. Gen. Nadeem Anjum, who was appointed by then-prime minister Imran Khan in 2021. 

“Lt. Gen. Muhammad Asim Malik has been appointed as DG ISI,” PTV News said. “Lt. Gen. Asim Malik will assume charge of his new responsibilities on Sept. 30.”

The state television said Malik has previously served in the Balochistan infantry division and commanded the infantry brigade in Pakistan’s northwestern Waziristan district. 

Pakistan’s new spy chief earned an honorary sword in his course, PTV said, adding that he has also served as chief instructor at the National Defense University (NDU) and as an instructor at the Command and Staff College Quetta.

Malik is a graduate of Fort Leavenworth in the United States and the Royal College of Defense Studies in London, the statement said.

The head of the ISI occupies one of the country’s most powerful positions. His posting comes at a time when Pakistan faces surging militant attacks in the country’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and southwestern Balochistan provinces by separatists and religiously motivated militants. The surge in militant attacks in KP has marred Pakistan’s relations with Afghanistan, whose government it accuses of providing sanctuaries to the Pakistani Taliban militants who launch attacks in Pakistan. 

The Taliban deny these allegations and have urged Pakistan to resolve their security challenges internally. 

Created in 1948, the ISI gained importance and power during the 1979-1989 Soviet occupation of Afghanistan, and is now rated one of best-organized intelligence agencies in the developing world.

The agency is seen as the Pakistani equivalent of the US Central Agency (CIA) and Israel’s Mossad. Its size is not publicly known but the ISI is widely believed to employ tens of thousands of agents, with informers in many spheres of public life.

The military intelligence agency is believed to have a hidden role in making many of the nuclear-armed nation’s policies, including in Afghanistan and India. The threat to Pakistan from nuclear-armed neighboring India has been a main preoccupation of the ISI through the decades.


Islamabad says IMF mission will visit Pakistan to assess governance, corruption risks

Updated 09 February 2025
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Islamabad says IMF mission will visit Pakistan to assess governance, corruption risks

  • The report will recommend actions for addressing corruption vulnerabilities and strengthening integrity and governance
  • The South Asian country, bolstered by a $7 billion IMF facility granted in September, is navigating an economic recovery

A three-member International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission will visit Pakistan to conduct a Governance and Corruption Diagnostic Assessment under the country's 2024 Extended Fund Facility program, the finance ministry said on Sunday, without specifying dates.
The ministry added that the report will recommend actions for addressing corruption vulnerabilities and strengthening integrity and governance, noting that the findings would help shape structural reforms.
"The focus of the mission will be to examine the severity of corruption vulnerabilities across six core state functions. These include fiscal governance, central bank governance and operations, financial sector oversight, market regulation, rule of law, and AML-CFT," the ministry said in the statement.
Pakistan’s government welcomed the IMF’s technical support, saying the assessment would aid efforts to promote transparency and institutional capacity.
The South Asian country, currently bolstered by a $7 billion facility from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) granted in September, is navigating an economic recovery.
The IMF is set to review Pakistan's progress by March, with the government and central bank expressing confidence about meeting its targets.
 


Pakistani security forces kill seven militants in restive northwest

Updated 09 February 2025
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Pakistani security forces kill seven militants in restive northwest

  • The militants were killed in intelligence-based operations in Dera Ismail Khan and North Waziristan districts
  • Islamabad blames a surge in militancy on militant groups operating out of Afghanistan, Kabul denies allegation

ISLAMABAD: Security forces have killed seven militants in separate engagements in the country’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province, the Pakistani military said on Sunday.

Pakistan has seen a surge in militancy in KP since a fragile truce between the Pakistani Taliban, or the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), and the state broke down in November 2022. The militants have stepped up attacks against police and security forces in recent months, with the military reporting deaths of 383 soldiers and 925 militants in various clashes in the country in 2024.

In the latest incident, three militants were killed and two others injured in an intelligence-based operation in KP’s Dera Ismail Khan district, according to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the Pakistani military’s media wing. Four suspected militants were killed in a gunfight in the North Waziristan district, which borders Afghanistan, while three others were injured.

“Sanitization operations are being conducted to eliminate any other Kharji [militant] found in the area,” the ISPR said in a statement.

The development came a day after militants attacked a police check-post in KP’s Bannu district, leaving two policemen dead and two others injured, according to a local police official.

No group immediately claimed for Saturday’s attack, but suspicion was likely to fall on the Pakistani Taliban, who have frequently targeted security forces and police convoys and check-posts, besides targeted killings and kidnappings of law enforcers and government officials in the region.

Islamabad has frequently blamed the surge in militancy on Afghanistan, accusing it of sheltering and supporting militant groups that launch cross-border attacks. Afghan officials deny involvement and insist that Pakistan’s security issues are an internal matter of Islamabad.


Pakistan condemns Israeli PM’s ‘irresponsible’ statement on establishing Palestinian state in Saudi Arabia

Updated 09 February 2025
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Pakistan condemns Israeli PM’s ‘irresponsible’ statement on establishing Palestinian state in Saudi Arabia

  • Pakistan says Netanyahu’s remarks “deeply offensive,” undermine legitimate rights of Palestinian people
  • Pakistan stands in solidarity with Saudi Arabia, commends its steadfast support for Palestinians, says Deputy PM Dar

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar on Sunday strongly condemned Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu’s statement calling for the establishment of a Palestinian state in Saudi Arabia, describing it as “irresponsible, provocative and thoughtless.”

Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Ministry on Sunday responded sharply to Netanyahu’s remarks, saying that it rejected “such statements that aim to divert attention from the continuous crimes committed by the Israeli occupation against the Palestinian brothers in Gaza.”

“Deputy Prime Minister/Foreign Minister Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar stated that the Israeli remark is irresponsible, provocative and thoughtless, which is not only deeply offensive but also undermines and disregards the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people to self-determination and an independent State on their own historical and legitimate territory,” Pakistan’s foreign ministry said. 

Dar said Pakistan stands in solidarity with Saudi Arabia and commends its steadfast support for Palestinians and their cause. 

“Any attempt to undermine Saudi Arabia’s unwavering position and misrepresentation of its commitment to the Palestinian cause are deeply regrettable,” he was quoted as saying by the foreign ministry. 

The deputy prime minister said Pakistan supports the right of Palestinians to establish an independent and sovereign state based on the pre-1967 borders, with Al Quds Al Sharif as its capital. 

“Any proposal that seeks to displace or relocate the Palestinian people from their ancestral homeland is unacceptable and constitutes a blatant violation of international law, United Nations resolutions and the principles of justice and fairness,” the statement said. 

Dar said Pakistan reiterates its “unflinching support” for the Palestinian cause and will continue to work closely with Saudi Arabia and other members of the international community to advocate for the rights of the Palestinian people. 

He called for a “just, comprehensive and lasting solution to the Palestinian issue.”

“Pakistan urges the international community to denounce this provocative remark and hold Israel accountable for its continued attempts to undermine the peace process,” the statement said. 

Netanyahu’s remarks come amid an uneasy six-week truce reached between Hamas and Israel last month which ended 15 months of war.

The truce included the gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces from central Gaza and the return of displaced Palestinians to northern Gaza.

Netanyahu’s comments follow US President Donald Trump’s suggestion earlier this month that Palestinians residing in Gaza should be resettled in Egypt, Jordan or other countries.

The proposal was rejected by both Egypt and Jordan and countries including Pakistan, prompting condemnation from various international rights groups as well.


Pakistan holds inaugural ‘Aman Dialogue 2025’ to foster international maritime cooperation

Updated 09 February 2025
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Pakistan holds inaugural ‘Aman Dialogue 2025’ to foster international maritime cooperation

  • Aman Dialogue brings together chiefs of navies, coast guards and defense forces from Feb. 9-10
  • Conference to focus on piracy, narco-trafficking and resource exploitation maritime challenges

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan held the inaugural session of the Aman Dialogue 2025 in Karachi on Sunday to foster international maritime cooperation among several countries around the world, stressing the importance of “unhindered activity” in seas to promote economic cooperation. 

The Aman Dialogue is being held from Feb. 9-10 and brings together chiefs of navies, coast guards and defense forces. It aims to provide them an opportunity to exchange views on global and regional security and adopt innovative solutions. 

This year’s conference is themed: “Secure Seas, Prosperous Future,” and focuses on security challenges in the Indian Ocean. These include strategic competition, piracy, narco-trafficking, non-state actors, resource exploitation, climate change, emerging technologies such as AI and unmanned systems, the blue economy and the need for global collaboration to ensure stability and prosperity.

“The global economic system is almost wholly dependent upon unhindered activity in the maritime domain,” Defense Minister Khawaja Asif said at an event held to mark the opening of the dialogue. 

“The uninterrupted use of seas and oceans remain the strategic interests of all nations,” he added. 

Asif called on countries to synergize their efforts to extract greater economic gains, saying that the maritime domain is at a “critical crossroads.”

“Our oceans carrying over 80 percent of global trade represent not only shipping lanes but the arteries of global prosperity,” the minister said, adding that the Indian Ocean alone holds over 50 percent of global oil and gas reserves. 

The dialogue coincides with the AMAN-25 multinational naval exercise, which kicked off on Friday in Karachi. Pakistan Navy’s fleet commander lauded the participation of 60 nations on Friday, hailing it as a testament to the world community’s desire for peace.

The Pakistan Navy has conducted the AMAN maritime exercise every two years since 2007 under the theme “Together For Peace,” involving ships, aircraft and special operations forces.


Pakistan PM to attend World Governments Summit in UAE from Feb. 10-11 

Updated 09 February 2025
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Pakistan PM to attend World Governments Summit in UAE from Feb. 10-11 

  • Shehbaz Sharif to deliver keynote address, highlight Pakistan’s vision for economic growth and governance reforms at summit
  • Pakistani premier to meet world leaders, UAE leadership and CEOs of major multinational companies at summit, says foreign office 

Islamabad: Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will visit the United Arab Emirates (UAE) from Feb. 10-11 to take part in the World Governments Summit (WGS), the foreign office said on Sunday, adding that the premier will engage in discussions with world leaders about the future of governance and international cooperation. 

According to the WGS’ official website, over 400 ministers and thousands of industry leaders, experts, and policymakers will head to Dubai for the summit which will be held from Feb. 11-13. As per the WGS, the event will also welcome more than 80 international, regional and intergovernmental organizations to join in the discussion on the future of governance, global challenges and their innovative solutions. 

This will be Sharif’s second visit to the UAE since assuming office in March last year, the foreign office said. He will be accompanied by a high-level delegation including Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar and other key members of the federal cabinet. 

“During his visit, the Prime Minister will deliver a keynote address at the WGS, highlighting Pakistan’s vision for inclusive economic growth, digital transformation and governance reforms,” the foreign office said. 

“He will also hold bilateral meetings with the UAE leadership as well as engage with Heads of State/Government from participating countries and leading CEOs of major multinational companies.”

The statement said Sharif’s visit underscores Pakistan’s unwavering commitment to further strengthening its ties with the UAE, fostering greater economic collaboration and exploring new avenues of partnership for mutual prosperity.

The UAE is Pakistan’s third-largest trading partner after China and the United States, and a major source of foreign investment valued at over $10 billion in the last 20 years, according to the UAE’s foreign ministry.

Policymakers in Pakistan consider the UAE an optimal export destination due to its geographical proximity, which minimizes transportation and freight costs while facilitating commercial transactions.

It is also home to more than a million Pakistani expatriates, making it the second-largest Pakistani expatriate community worldwide, as per the foreign office, and a major source of foreign workers’ remittances for Pakistan. 

Pakistan and UAE have stepped up efforts in recent years to strengthen their business and investment relations. In January 2024, Pakistan and the UAE signed multiple agreements worth more than $3 billion for cooperation in railways, economic zones and infrastructure, a Pakistani official said, amid Pakistani caretaker prime minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar’s visit to Davos for the World Economic Forum’s summit.