Ex-ISI chief is Musharraf successor

Islamabad: President Pervez Musharraf yesterday appointed former intelligence chief Ashfaq Parvez Kiyani as his successor as army chief, signalling a possible end to the eight-year-old military rule in the weeks ahead.

Lieutenant-General Kiyani has been promoted to the rank of general and will assume charge as chief of army staff on vacation of the office, a military announcement said.

Kiyani, a former chief of the elite Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), will meanwhile take over as Vice Chief of Army Staff on October 8, a day after the retirement of the incumbent, Gen Ehsan Saleem Hyat.

Lt Gen Tariq Majid, until recently corps commander Rawalpindi, was promoted to general and named Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee as of October 8, replacing retiring General Ehsanul Haq.

Musharraf has told the Supreme Court he would abandon the uniform if he is re-elected in the election scheduled for October 6 and take the oath as a civilian head of state. His current term as president expires on November 15.

'Capable officer'

Talat Masood, a prominent defence analyst, said Gen Kiyani "is a very good choice" and the appointment would reduce the uncertainty surrounding Musharraf's uniform.

"The new army chief-designate is a very capable officer and fully equipped to handle the current challenges facing the military in the form of insurgencies and external threats," Masood said.

Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee Gen Tariq Majid was commissioned in the Baloch Regiment in April 1971. He is a graduate of the Command and Staff College, Quetta, Malaysian Armed Forces Staff College, Kuala Lumpur, Asia Pacific College of Security Studies, Hawaii, USA, National Defence College, Pakistan and holds an MSc degree in War Studies.

Islamabad Lt Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kiyani was commissioned in the Baloch Regiment in August 1971. He is a graduate of the Command and Staff College, Quetta, Command and General Staff College, Fort Leavenworth, USA, and the National Defence College, Islamabad.

During his career he has commanded an infantry battalion, infantry brigade, infantry division and a corps. Besides being chief of staff corps, he has also held the coveted appointment of director-general of military operations.

An avid golfer and keen sportsman, Gen Kiyani is also President of the Pakistan Golf Association. He is married and has a son and daughter.

According to military sources in 2003, as corps commander Rawalpindi, he supervised investigations into two assassination attempts against Musharraf and successfully tracked down the culprits, thus earning the confidence of the president. He last served as director-general of the ISI and in that capacity advised the president against initiating a misconduct case against Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry in March.

During the Red Mosque crisis in Islamabad, he also advised Musharraf to resolve it through negotiations. Finally a commando operation in July ended the mosque episode, leaving 103 people dead and triggering a wave of backlash suicide attacks in the country.

As ISI chief he played a key role in the fight against terrorism and the struggle against other internal security threats including violent militancy in tribal areas.