Pakistan PM names Lt Gen Asim Munir as new army chief: Minister | Military News

Information minister Marriyum Aurangzeb announces the appointment on Twitter, ending weeks of speculation over the powerful post.

Islamabad, Pakistan – Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has named Lieutenant General Asim Munir as the new army chief.

Information minister Marriyum Aurangzeb announced the appointment on Twitter on Thursday, ending weeks of speculation over what some call the most powerful position in the South Asian nation.

Lieutenant General Sahir Shamshad will take charge as the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, she added.

The current army chief, General Qamar Javed Bajwa, will end his six-year tenure on November 29.

PM Sharif held a cabinet meeting earlier on Thursday where he selected Munir from a list of six nominees for the top military post.

Defence minister Khawaja Asif said the two names have been sent for approval to President Arif Alvi, who is also the supreme commander of Pakistan’s armed forces.