Pakistan’s PM Appoints Former Spy Chief as Head of Military Amid Political Crisis

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif addresses the 77th session of the United Nations General Assembly at the U.N. headquarters in New York City on Sept. 23, 2022. (Bryan R. Smith/AFP via Getty Images)

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has appointed Lt. Gen. Asim Munir, the former Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) chief, as head of the nuclear-armed military amid a political crisis.

The Ministry of Defense announced his appointment in a statement published by local media on Nov. 25. Munir will take over for Army Chief Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa, whose six-year term expires on Nov. 29.

Sharif named Lt. Gen. Sahir Shamshad Mirza as the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee. Both nominations were approved by President Arif Alvi, who is also the supreme commander of Pakistan’s armed forces.

The position of army chief is a powerful one in Pakistan, as the military played a significant role in the country’s politics, having ruled the country for 34 years of its 75 years of existence. The military also controls Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal.

Munir’s appointment could impact Pakistan’s fragile democracy, its relations with neighbors India and Taliban-ruled Afghanistan, as well as its pivot toward China or the United States.

He previously led Pakistan’s Military Intelligence in 2017 and then the ISI in 2018. Munir was removed as ISI chief after eight months on the job, at the request of then-Prime Minister Imran Khan, with no explanation given.

Munir is currently serving as the army’s quartermaster general, in charge of supplies. He is also the most senior-ranking general after Bajwa.

Political Crisis

Munir’s appointment occurred amid a political crisis, following anti-government protests led by Khan after being ousted in a parliament vote in April.

Khan, who was wounded in a gun attack at a rally earlier this month, accused Sharif, Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah, and Maj. Gen. Faisal Naseer of plotting his murder. He did not provide any evidence to support his claims.

Pakistan's former Prime Minister Imran Khan addresses the media representatives at a hospital a day after an assassination attempt on him, in Lahore, Pakistan, on Nov. 4, 2022. (Arif Ali/AFP via Getty Images)

The Pakistani government and the military have denied the allegations.

Khan has planned a protest gathering on Nov. 26 in the garrison city of Rawalpindi, home to the army’s headquarters, as part of his campaign for early elections. He plans to march on the capital, Islamabad, from Rawalpindi.

Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party congratulated the new army leaders and expressed hope that they will uphold the country’s constitutional rights and democracy, The Express Tribune reported.

“The people of Pakistan expect that their armed forces, while dealing with an array of external threats, would stay out of the politics of domestic affairs and that the rights of political parties would not be infringed,” PTI said in a statement.

“Free, fair, [and] transparent early elections are the only solution to the prevailing crisis in the country, and we believe that all individuals, as well as institutions who feel the pain of the nation, must play their role in ensuring this democratic future,” it added.

Reuters contributed to this report.