Tariq Majid
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| Tariq Majid | |
|---|---|
| Born August 23, 1950 | |
 General Tariq Majid Salutes in a Military Parade |
|
| Place of birth | Lahore, Pakistan |
| Allegiance |  Pakistan |
| Service/branch |  Pakistan Army |
| Years of service | 1971 – |
| Rank | General |
| Unit | Baloch Regiment (28 Baloch) |
| Commands held | 10th Infantry Division, Lahore DG Military Intelligence (DGMI) Chief of General Staff (CGS) X Corps, Rawalpindi Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee |
| Battles/wars | Indo-Pakistan War of 1971 2001–2002 India–Pakistan standoff War in North-West Pakistan Siege of Lal Masjid |
| Awards | Hilal-e-Imtiaz (Military) Nishan-e-Imtiaz (Military) |
General Tariq Majid, NI(M), afwc, fsc(m), psc, (born 23 August 1950 at Lahore) is a Pakistani general and current Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee. He took over the chairmanship when the out-going General Ehsan ul Haq retired on 7 October, 2007. Presently, he is the highest ranking general in the Pakistan Armed Forces.
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[edit] Army career
Tariq Majid, originally from Lahore, joined Pakistan Military Academy as a cadet in 1970 and was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in 28th (Light Anti Tank) Battalion of the Baloch Regiment of Pakistan Army in April 1971. He is graduate of Command and Staff College, Quetta (1982); Malaysian Armed Forces Staff College, Kuala Lumpur; Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies, Honolulu, Hawaii; Armed Forces War Course (1991) from National Defence College, Islamabad, and holds masters of science in War Studies from Quaid-i-Azam University. He is a war veteran of the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971.
[edit] Command experience
On promotion to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in January 1988, he had the privilege of commanding the Battalion in which he was commissioned and later he also commanded a regular Infantry Battalion. In February 1994, he was promoted Brigadier and commanded two Infantry Brigades. On elevation to the rank of Major General in February 1999, he was appointed General Officer Commanding of 10th Infantry Division at Lahore.
[edit] Staff and instructional experience
The major staff and instructional appointments include serving as a Brigade Major of an infantry brigade and as a Lieutenant Colonel, he held the appointment of a General Staff Officer Grade 1 at Military Operations Directorate, General Headquarters. He has been on various instructional appointments at prestigious training institutions like School of Infantry and Tactics and Command and Staff College, Quetta. As a Brigadier, he was appointed Director Military Operations (Plans) in the Military Operations Directorate at General Headquarters and Deputy Commandant of Pakistan Military Academy. He served as the Director General of Military Intelligence (DGMI) from April 2001 to December 2003.[1]
[edit] Chief of General Staff
Tariq Majid was promoted to Lieutenant General in December 2003, and given the post of Chief of General Staff, in place of Lt Gen Shahid Aziz, who proceeded as the corps commander Lahore.[2] The post of CGS is important in a sense that it heads the bureaus of Military Intelligence and Military Operations. In fact, the corps commander Rawalpindi and the CGS are to be staunch loyalist to the army chief, in order for him to carry a successful military coup, as in the case of military coup of 1999. He was swapped by Lt Gen Salahuddin Satti as the CGS in October 2006 as the Rawalpindi Corps Commander.
[edit] Corps Commander Rawalpindi
Tariq Majid's one year stint as the corps commander was eventful as it featured the suspension of Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry and the following mass protests, and the Siege of Lal Masjid. In the latter occasion, he was himself in charge of the armed forces who were to take down the armed militias stationed inside the mosque. He gained significant publicity from this event, and was soon predicted by the media and the analysts to be given the four-star posts of either VCOAS or CJCSC. These predictions were true, when in October 2007, he was made the Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee.[3]
[edit] Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee
Tariq Majid was promoted as four-star general on 8 October 2007, the only officer from the Baloch Regiment after Rahimuddin Khan to ascend to CJCSC, in place of outgoing General Ehsan ul Haq who was due for retirement. At the time of promotion, Tariq Majid was fourth on the seniority list. Lieutenant Generals Khalid Kidwai, Ashfaq Parvez Kayani (who was also promoted as four-star and made VCOAS), and Malik Arif Hayat were all senior to him, all of whom stood superseded and sought retirement. It is noteworthy that Lt Gen Khalid Kidwai was already on a year's extension and Lt Gen Malik Arif Hayat had never commanded a corps thus virtually taking him out of the race for the top two slots in the army. Majid's three year term will end in October 2010.
[edit] Suicide Attack near Majid's Residence
On October 30, a suicide bomber struck a police checkpoint in the high security zone of Rawalpindi, less than a kilometer from President General Pervez Musharraf’s camp office, killing seven people, three of them policemen, and injuring 31 others. The blast splattered check post of General Tariq Majid's official residence.[4]
[edit] References
- ^ "New CJCSC and VCOAS" ISPR Press Release, 2 October, 2007
- ^ "Promotions, Transfers of Army Top Brass Announced" Pakistan Times, 19 December, 2003
- ^ "Gen. Kiyani named Vice Chief of Army Chief" The News, 2 October, 2007
- ^ "Suicide attack in top security zone: Seven killed, 31 injured" Dawn, 31 October, 2007
[edit] External links
| Military offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Shahid Aziz |
Chief of General Staff 2003 – 2006 |
Succeeded by Salahuddin Satti |
| Preceded by Ehsan ul Haq |
Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee 2007 – present |
Incumbent |
