ISLAMABAD: The federal government on Thursday announced that Lieutenant General Asim Munir would become Pakistan’s next army chief, replacing General Qamar Javed Bajwa.

The announcement has been made by Minister for Information and Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb on Twitter. She added that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, exercising his Constitutional right, has also appointed Lt Gen Sahir Shamshad Mirza as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (CJCSC). She said the summary of the appointments has been forwarded to President Dr. Arif Alvi.

The decision was announced after Prime Minister Shehbaz held a federal cabinet meeting to mull over the appointments after the allied parties authorized him to pick the officers for the top slots. Lieutenant General Asim Munir is currently serving as the Quarter Master General at the General Headquarters (GHQ). Previously, he served as Corps Commander Gujranwala and headed both the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and Military Intelligence (MI).

During his posting in Madina as a Lieutenant Colonel, Asim Munir became Hafiz-i-Quran at the age of 38. Asim Munir is also a holder of the Sword of Honour. He was awarded Hilal-i-Imtiaz in March 2018. Lieutenant General Sahir Shamshad Mirza is currently serving as Corps Commander Rawalpindi. Previously, he served as Chief of General Staff, Adjutant General at General Headquarters and Director General Military Operations.