Pakistan names US-educated general as new ISI chief

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's ISI will have a new chief in Lt Gen Muhammad Asim Malik from Sept 30, replacing former PM Imran Khan's appointee, Lt Gen Nadeem Anjum, the military's media wing announced Monday.

Inter-Service Public Relations said in a release that the new ISI director general previously served in the Balochistan Infantry Division and commandeered the brigade in Pakistan's northwestern Waziristan tribal district.

Malik is a graduate of Fort Leavenworth in the US and the Royal College of Defence Studies in London, according to the statement.

A recipient of the Sword of Honour in his course, he had also served as the chief instructor at the National Defence University in Islamabad and taught at the Command and Staff College, Quetta.

The ISI chief's position is considered the most powerful in Pakistan after that of the army chief, playing a key role in the country's internal and external policies.

Malik takes over from Anjum at a time when Pakistan has been facing a surge of militant attacks in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and southwestern Balochistan provinces.

Former PM Imran's initial reluctance to notify Anjum's appointment had strained his relationship with the then military leadership.