ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has appointed a serving major-general of the army to a senior position in the interior ministry, officials said on Monday, with the unprecedented move ostensibly aimed at “enhancing coordination” among civil armed forces amid a surge in militancy.
While the appointment of retired army officials to civilian government positions is a norm in Pakistan, which has been ruled by its powerful army for nearly half of its 78-year history, the appointment of a serving officer is unprecedented.
Major General Noor Wali Khan has been transferred and posted as an additional secretary at the interior ministry on a secondment basis for three years, according to a notification issued by Pakistan’s Cabinet Secretariat.
“General Khan will head all civil armed forces in the ministry,” Qadir Yar Tiwana, an interior ministry spokesman, told Arab News, declining to share further details of his mandate.
A senior official at the interior ministry, who requested anonymity, said the appointment was aimed at “enhancing coordination among multiple civil armed forces working under the interior ministry.”
The ministry oversees several civilian armed agencies, including the Frontier Corps, Pakistan Rangers, Pakistan Coast Guard, Gilgit-Baltistan Scouts, Federal Constabulary and the Anti-Narcotics Force.
The ministry plays a pivotal role in overseeing internal security, counterterrorism, law enforcement and public safety in Pakistan, which became the world’s second-most affected country by militant violence in 2024, with deaths rising 45 percent to 1,081, according to the Global Terrorism Index 2025.
The South Asian country is battling twin insurgencies, one led by religiously motivated groups, including the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), mainly in its Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, and the other by ethno-nationalist Baloch separatist groups, Daesh and other smaller groups in Balochistan.
Afzal Ali Shigri, a former inspector general of police, told Arab News, he saw the appointment of a serving general in the interior ministry as a “strategic step” aimed at countering the surge in militancy through enhanced coordination among civilian forces.
“The interior ministry is a very powerful division of the government as it deals with major issues concerning internal security of Pakistan,” Shigri said.
“This appointment is a prerogative of the federal government as they might have considered it necessary for better coordination among various departments.”
In response to comments for this story, the military’s media wing asked to direct all queries to the Establishment Division or the ministry of defense.
The posting of a major general to the powerful interior ministry is being widely seen as another significant step in extending the military’s footprint into civilian governance structures. Last year, a serving army officer was appointed to the top position at the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA), which oversees national identity cards and citizens’ data.
The interior ministry’s mandate extends well beyond internal security, dealing with critical issues such as visa regulation for foreign nationals, including hundreds of thousands of Afghans residing in Pakistan. The ministry has in the past faced allegations of corruption and irregularities in visa issuance, an area now expected to come under stricter oversight with the appointment of a serving general.
In addition, the ministry recently elevated the paramilitary Frontier Constabulary, a force traditionally under provincial control, to the status of a federal entity. Insiders say General Khan will also supervise this transition, further consolidating military oversight of civil armed forces and internal security operations at a time when Pakistan faces mounting pressure from militancy and cross-border challenges.
