President Zardari in a meeting with PM Gilani, COAS General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, FM Shah Mahmood Qureshi, and Lt. General Ahmed Shuja Pasha (R) at the presidency.

ISLAMABAD: The Chief of Army Staff, General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, has given a one-year extension in service to Lt. General Ahmed Shuja Pasha to allow him to complete his tenure as three-star general and, more importantly, as head of the country’s premier spy agency, the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).

Sources told our correspondent a summary for Lt. Gen Pasha’s extension, initiated by the Defence Ministry, had been approved by Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani.

The summary, they said, had reached the General Headquarters (GHQ) through the Defence Ministry.

The news of extension has become public only a day after the army chief met President Asif Zardari and officials here believe that the matter may have been discussed at the meeting.

Lt. Gen Pasha is the fourth Lt. General to be given extension in service by the present army chief.

Although service extension is always viewed with scepticism, in the case of Lt. Gen Pasha it was widely expected but many believe it meets the merit criterion.

They say that although he reaches the age of superannuation on March 18, more than a year remains in his tenure as a three-star general.

Besides, some senior security analysts said, Gen Pasha was directly involved in major missions, most important of them being the security establishment’s decision to systematically eradicate the militancy culture and jihadi organisations from the country.

Gen Pasha is one of the few chiefs of ISI who have remained in close touch with the administration and have briefed members of parliament on the ongoing military operations in Malakand and tribal agencies.

Regarded by most serving and retired military officials as an upright and dedicated intelligence official, Gen Pasha is also considered to be a close confidant of army chief General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani. He served as Director-General Military Operations (DGMO) at the army headquarters and oversaw military engagements in Waziristan, Swat and other areas.

In October 2007, Gen Pasha was selected as military adviser to Secretary-General of United Nations, but due to his commitments as DGMO he did not join the UN.

Soon after coming into power, the present government tried to place the premier intelligence agency under the administrative, financial, and operational control of the Interior Ministry, but it failed to do so and had to shelve the controversial notification.

Lt. Gen Pasha was appointed as Director General ISI in September 2008, replacing Lt General Nadeem Taj, who had been appointed by Pervez Musharraf.

It may be mentioned that Nadeem Taj had been appointed ISI chief in place of the present army chief.

29 Pak Army Brigadiers promoted to Maj-General rank

Those promoted include 10 officers from Infantry, four each from Artillery and Medical Corps, three from engineering corps, two each from Electrical and Mechanical Engineering and Army Services Corps and one each from Armoured Corps, Air Defence Signals and Ordnance.

Twenty-nine brigadiers have been promoted to the rank of major general and a major reshuffle in the army’s top brass is reported to be on the cards after expected promotion of at least seven officers to three-star generals over the next few weeks.

The decision was taken at a meeting of the selection board presided over by Chief of the Army Staff General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani on Wednesday.

Those promoted include 10 officers from Infantry, four each from Artillery and Medical Corps, three from engineering corps, two each from Electrical and Mechanical Engineering (EME) and Army Services Corps and one each from Armoured Corps, Air Defence Signals and Ordnance.

They are: Brigadiers Nadir Zeb (Armoured Corps), Allah Ditta Khan, Obaid Ullah Khan, Naveed Ahmed and Mian M. Hilal Hussain (Artillery), Muhammad Zahid Latif Mirza (Air Defence), Muhammad Imran Zafar, Shahzad Sikander and Asghar Nawaz (Engineers), Sohail Abbas Zaidi (Signals), Abid Hasan, Ikram Ul Haq, Nasrullah Tahir Dogar, Agha Masood Akram, Inam Ul Haq, Sohail Ahmed Khan, Naushad Ahmed Kayani, Rizwan Akhtar, Tariq Javed and Ghayur Mahmood (Infantry), Sajid Iqbal and Imtiaz Hussain Sherazi (Army Services Corps), Faiz Muhammad Khan Bangash (Ordnance), Tariq Jawaid and Syed Jamal Shahid (EME) and Adil Khan, Amjad Fahim, Hamid Shafique and Abdul Khaliq Naveed (Army Medical Corps).

Sources told our correspondent that Army Air Defence Commander Lt-Gen Muhammad Ashraf Saleem, who was due to retire on March 31, had tendered resignation for personal reasons and it was under process.

Peshawar Corps Commander Lt-Gen Masood Aslam, who is on extension has expressed his inability to continue and is most likely to relinquish charge by the end of this month. His young son was killed in a terrorist attack on a mosque in Rawalpindi’s Parade Lane on Dec 4 last year. Lt-Gen Sikandar Afzal, who is also on extension and currently on a UN assignment, will complete his term of service in a couple of months.

A lieutenant general is most likely to be appointed at the Special Plans Division where he will benefit from expertise of the division’s incumbent chief Lt-Gen Khalid Ahmad Qidwai before replacing him. The sources said that Mangla Corps Commander General Nadeem Ahmed, Lahore Corps Commander Lt-Gen Ijaz Ahmad Bakshi, Chairman of the Earthquake Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Authority Lt-Gen Sajjad Akram and Inspector General of Training and Evaluation at GHQ Lt-Gen Ahsan Azhar Hayat will retire on May 1. Lt-Gen Shahid Niaz, currently serving as engineer-in-chief at GHQ, will retire by the end of June.

The sources said that seven to eight major generals would soon be promoted to the rank of lieutenant general to fill the vacancies. They said a reshuffle was imminent after the promotion of officers. Currently four lieutenant generals are on extension and there are indications that more extensions are possible in coming days.

The sources said the Chief of General Staff Lt-Gen Mustafa Khan, who is due to retire on Oct 31, is likely to get an extension for at least six months. Also Lt-Gen S. Absar Hussain, who is currently serving as Commander Strategic Force, will retire on Oct 22 and is most likely to get an extension.