Islamabad: Pakistan Army transferred Peshawar Vahini Commander, Lieutenant General Faizo hameedBahawalpur has been seen by Islamabad as a strategic policy shift towards Kabul and Pakistani terrorists living with their families across the border in Afghanistan.
Known for his involvement in the Soviet-Afghan War, Peshawar The Corps (XI Corps) became the main Pakistani formation after 9/11 to fight terrorism in tribal areas and adjoining districts in the country’s northwest.
According to the media wing of the Pakistan Army, Lieutenant General Sardar Hasan Azhar Hayat has been transferred to Peshawar Corps in place of Hameed, who has been posted as the commander of Bahawalpur Corps.
Transfers and postings in military services are a regular affair but Hameed’s case is considered rare. His name first attracted media attention in November 2017 for his role in ending a sit-in in Islamabad by an far-right group against a law that the group considered blasphemous.
Widely considered close to the former prime minister Imran The transfer of Khan, Hameed from the ISI Director General to the chief of the crucial Peshawar Corps last year had become a bone of contention between Imran Khan and Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa. Imran was reluctant to transfer Hameed and put the process on hold for a few months. This led to a political crisis in the country, which culminated in the ouster of Imran from power last April.
As an ISI chief, Hameed had appeared at the Serena Hotel in Kabul last year, days after sipping tea and smiling. Taliban seized power in Afghanistan. Some critics saw the move as an attempt to paint a larger-than-life image of himself in the affairs of the war-torn country at a crucial time.
After his transfer to Peshawar, Hameed began a dialogue process with the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), an umbrella organization of several terrorist organizations, through the Afghan Taliban, and personally took part in the talks. had visited Kabul.
Following talks between the Pakistani military and intelligence officials, General Faiz had formed a 50-member delegation of tribal elders, including current and former MPs, to Kabul to take forward the peace process with the leaders of the terrorist group. TTP’s recent talks with Pakistani clerics had ended in a deadlock. A ceasefire announced between the two sides more than two months ago remains intact, but talks have been cut short after the recent killing of top militant leaders, including Umar Khalid Khurasani, in an explosion in Paktika province’s Barmal district. .
Some observers regard the events as the assassination of al-Qaeda chief Ayman al-Zawahiri in a drone strike in Kabul and a resurgence of US interest and engagement in Afghanistan, reflecting Islamabad’s increased role in Washington’s plan of things. it shows. Kabul. “General Hameed’s policy towards Afghanistan and the Pakistani Taliban has failed miserably. His transfer comes at a time when both external and internal security challenges seem to be mounting. It seems that Pakistan has realized that force is a better option to deal with terrorism rather than dialogue,” said political commentator Muzammil Suharwardy.
Known for his involvement in the Soviet-Afghan War, Peshawar The Corps (XI Corps) became the main Pakistani formation after 9/11 to fight terrorism in tribal areas and adjoining districts in the country’s northwest.
According to the media wing of the Pakistan Army, Lieutenant General Sardar Hasan Azhar Hayat has been transferred to Peshawar Corps in place of Hameed, who has been posted as the commander of Bahawalpur Corps.
Transfers and postings in military services are a regular affair but Hameed’s case is considered rare. His name first attracted media attention in November 2017 for his role in ending a sit-in in Islamabad by an far-right group against a law that the group considered blasphemous.
Widely considered close to the former prime minister Imran The transfer of Khan, Hameed from the ISI Director General to the chief of the crucial Peshawar Corps last year had become a bone of contention between Imran Khan and Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa. Imran was reluctant to transfer Hameed and put the process on hold for a few months. This led to a political crisis in the country, which culminated in the ouster of Imran from power last April.
As an ISI chief, Hameed had appeared at the Serena Hotel in Kabul last year, days after sipping tea and smiling. Taliban seized power in Afghanistan. Some critics saw the move as an attempt to paint a larger-than-life image of himself in the affairs of the war-torn country at a crucial time.
After his transfer to Peshawar, Hameed began a dialogue process with the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), an umbrella organization of several terrorist organizations, through the Afghan Taliban, and personally took part in the talks. had visited Kabul.
Following talks between the Pakistani military and intelligence officials, General Faiz had formed a 50-member delegation of tribal elders, including current and former MPs, to Kabul to take forward the peace process with the leaders of the terrorist group. TTP’s recent talks with Pakistani clerics had ended in a deadlock. A ceasefire announced between the two sides more than two months ago remains intact, but talks have been cut short after the recent killing of top militant leaders, including Umar Khalid Khurasani, in an explosion in Paktika province’s Barmal district. .
Some observers regard the events as the assassination of al-Qaeda chief Ayman al-Zawahiri in a drone strike in Kabul and a resurgence of US interest and engagement in Afghanistan, reflecting Islamabad’s increased role in Washington’s plan of things. it shows. Kabul. “General Hameed’s policy towards Afghanistan and the Pakistani Taliban has failed miserably. His transfer comes at a time when both external and internal security challenges seem to be mounting. It seems that Pakistan has realized that force is a better option to deal with terrorism rather than dialogue,” said political commentator Muzammil Suharwardy.