Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Qamar Javed Bajwa visited the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) headquarters on Monday. Director General ISI Lieutenant General Faiz Hamid received him, according to a statement from the military’s media wing.
The COAS was briefed on “internal security and the ongoing situation in Afghanistan”, the statement from the Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR) stated.
The statement added that General Bajwa expressed his satisfaction over the preparedness of the organisation.
It is pertinent to note that the Army chief’s visit to the ISI headquarters comes amidst an alleged standoff between the military and the government over the appointment of the new spymaster.
In this regard, the army had announced on October 6 that the incumbent ISI chief, Lt Gen Faiz Hameed, had been posted as Peshawar Corps Commander, while Lt Gen Nadeem Ahmed Anjum was appointed in his place as DG-ISI.
However, the Prime Minister’s Office has not yet issued an official notification of Lt Gen Anjum’s appointment, leading to rumours about issues in civil-military ties.
Chaudhry had said that PM Imran Khan and the army chief had a “long sitting” the previous night to discuss the matter and the premier had subsequently taken the cabinet into confidence over the issue.
“Gen Bajwa and the prime minister have close and cordial relations. And it is also important from a historical perspective that there are ideal relations between Pakistan’s civilian and military leaderships,” he had added.
