General Asim Munir

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday nominated Lt Gen Asim Munir as Pakistan’s new chief of army staff (COAS).

Lieutenant General Syed Asim Munir is the senior most officer after outgoing Army Chief Qamar Javed Bajwa. Lt-Gen Munir entered the service via the Officers Training School (OTS) programme in Mangla and was commissioned into the 23rd Battalion of the Frontier Force Regiment.

Lt-Gen Munir is the recipient of the Sword of Honour from the 17th course of the Officers Training School in Mangla. Also, he is the recipient of the Hilal-i-Imtiaz.

He was appointed DG of the Military Intelligence in early 2017 and then ISI Director General in October 2018.

Lieutenant General Asim Munir was posted as Gujranwala Corps commander, a position he held for two years, before being moved to the General Headquarters as the quartermaster general.

The nominated Lt Gen Asim Munir will become the first COAS who has headed both — the Military Intelligence (MI) and the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI). He will also be the first chief of army staff who has been awarded the Sword of Honour.

He is a “Hafiz-e-Quran,” having memorised the Quran while serving as a Lt. Colonel in Saudi Arabia at the age of 38.