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X Corps (Pakistan)

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X Corps
Badge of X Corps
Active1974; 50 years ago (1974)
Country Pakistan
Branch Pakistan Army
TypeXXX Corps
RoleManeuver/Deployment oversight
Size~45,000 approximately
(Though this may vary as units are rotated)
HQ/GarrisonChaklala Cantonment, Punjab, Pakistan
Nickname(s) The Pindi Corps
Rawalpindi Corps[1]
Northern Command': 309 [2]
Colors IdentificationRed, white and yellow
   
Anniversaries1974
EngagementsIndo-Pakistani wars and conflicts

Military standoffs with India

India–Pakistan border skirmishes

DecorationsMilitary Decorations of Pakistan military
Commanders
CommanderLt-Gen. Shahid Imtiaz
Chief of StaffBrig. Zeeshan
Notable
commanders
Gen. Ashfaq Pervez Kiyani
Gen. S.S. Mirza
Gen. Nadeem Raza
Gen. Qamar Javed
Gen. Tariq Majid
Lt-Gen. J.D. Khan
Lt-Gen. Zahid Ali Akbar
Lt-Gen. Jamshed Gulzar Kiyani
Lt-Gen. Mahmud Ahmed
Lt-Gen. Ali Kuli Khan
Lt-Gen. G.M. Malik
Lt-Gen. Aftab Ahmed
Insignia
War Flag

The X Corps is a field corps of Pakistan Army, currently headquartered in Chaklala Cantonment, Punjab, Pakistan.[3] Together with the I Corps, it has an area of responsibility and responsibility to protect the Kashmir region— the side only which Pakistan administrates.[4]

With army reserves, paramilitary, and assigned to protect the presidency, the X Corps forms and leads an important formation in Pakistan' security spectrum, which is known as Northern Command.: 309–311 [2]

It is currently commanded by its commander, Lt-Gen. Shahid Imtiaz.[5]

History

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Formation and war service

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After the 1971 conflict with India, the Pakistani military had to modify its organizational structure to meet parity with Indian Army.: 64 [6] This eventually led to the establishing of the X Corps with Lieutenant-General Aftab Ahmad Khan becoming its first commander, with its headquarters in Chaklala Cantonment near Rawalpindi in 1974.[4]

Unlike the I Corps, the X Corps has an area of expertise in winter and mountain warfare, and oversees security operations together with the local law enforcement, mountain divisions guarding the nation's mountain ranges, and paramilitary to ensure the national defenses of the Pakistan.: 145–146 [7] By accumulating all the military elements, the X Corps leads a regional formation to ensure the defenses and national security under a command known as "Northern Command".: 70–75 [6]

The north–south regional formation, with X Corps leading the Northern Command, was formed by the Army GHQ working under then-army chief Gen. Ashfaq Pervez, only to address the Indian Army's Cold Start strategy.[2]

Its badge insignia, as an ode to Lt-Gen. Aftab Ahmad Khan, the insignia of the X Corps features a Rising Sun or Aftab (in Urdu) with 10 rays extruding from it.[4] Due to its deployment in sensitive border areas and mission parameters to prevent Indian Army's adventures in northern fronts, the X Corps has seen more military actions against the Indian Army than any of Pakistan's maneuver corps deployed in other fronts.[8]

Serving on the Line of Control

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Since its deployment in 1974, the X Corps has faced the Indian Army across the Line of Control (LoC) and northern frontiers of Pakistan's borders. The X Corps has fought battles in Siachen conflict in 1984 and a border war with India in 1999.[4]

Since 1974, its primary mission has been to prevent and mitigate the threats of Indian Army's advancement in northern frontiers of Pakistan.[6]

Structure

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The X Corps oversees the operational control and command of the Force Command Northern Areas (a mountain warfare division), Mujahid Force, a reservist unit of the Army National Guards, and others battalions of the special forces.[3]

The X Corps structure is composed of five infantry division and one brigade of each of infantry brigade, armored, artillery, signal, and an engineering brigade.[3]

Additional reinforcement to provide support to X Corps comes from the other mountain divisions of the XI Corps, batteries of Army Air Defence Command, the Air Force's Northern Air Command and Navy's Northern Command that also includes the Pakistan Marines several battalions;: 312  it forms the joint military formation, known as Northern Command, which the X Corps leads to enforce national defenses of Pakistan on the northern front.[3]

Under the statue of Northern Command, the X Corps provides military support to civil armed forces and provincial governments in the northern fronts while protecting the territory and national interests of the Pakistan within the country.[3]

Structure of X Corps
Corps Corps HQ Corps Commander Assigned Units Formation Badge Unit HQ
X Corps Rawalpindi, Punjab Lt Gen Shahid Imtiaz
12th Infantry Division Murree, Punjab
19th Infantry Division Mangla, Azad Kashmir
23rd Infantry Division Jhelum, Punjab
Force Command Northern Areas Gilgit
34th Light Infantry Division Chilas
111th Infantry Brigade Rawalpindi, Punjab
8th Independent Armoured Brigade Khairan, Punjab
Independent Artillery Brigade N/A
Independent Signal Brigade N/A
Independent Engineering Brigade N/A

List of commanders

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# Name Start of tenure End of tenure
1 Lt Gen Aftab Ahmad Khan March 1973 March 1976
2 Lt Gen Faiz Ali Chishti March 1976 March 1980
3 Lt Gen Jahan Dad Khan March 1980 April 1984
4 Lt Gen Zahid Ali Akbar Khan April 1984 May 1987
5 Lt Gen Imran Ullah Khan May 1987 June 1991
6 Lt Gen Ghulam Muhammad Malik June 1991 October 1995
7 Lt Gen Ali Kuli Khan Khattak October 1995 May 1997
8 Lt Gen Saleem Haider May 1997 October 1998
9 Lt Gen Mahmud Ahmed October 1998 October 1999
10 Lt Gen Jamshed Gulzar Kiani November 1999 October 2001
11 Lt Gen Syed Arif Hassan October 2001 October 2003
12 Lt Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani October 2003 August 2004
13 Lt Gen Salahuddin Satti October 2004 November 2006
14 Lt Gen Tariq Majid November 2006 October 2007
15 Lt Gen Mohsin Kamal October 2007 October 2008
16 Lt Gen Tahir Mahmud October 2008 May 2010
17 Lt Gen Khalid Nawaz Khan May 2010 August 2013
18 Lt Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa August 2013 October 2015
19 Lt Gen Malik Zafar Iqbal October 2015 December 2016
20 Lt Gen Nadeem Raza December 2016 September 2018
22 Lt Gen Bilal Akbar September 2018 September 2019
23 Lt Gen Azhar Abbas September 2019 September 2021
24 Lt Gen Sahir Shamshad Mirza September 2021 November 2022
25 Lt Gen Shahid Imtiaz November

2022

Present-

References

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  1. ^ "Rawalpindi Corps Commander visits troops at LoC". pakobserver.net.
  2. ^ a b c Nawaz, Shuja (10 April 2020). The Battle for Pakistan: The Bitter US Friendship and a Tough Neighbourhood. Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 978-1-5381-4205-9. Retrieved 19 November 2023.
  3. ^ a b c d e Alam, Dr Shah (1 July 2012). Pakistan Army: Modernisation, Arms Procurement and Capacity Building. Vij Books India Pvt Ltd. ISBN 978-93-81411-79-7. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
  4. ^ a b c d X Corps
  5. ^ "ISPR announces reshuffle in Army command". The Express Tribune. 24 August 2018.
  6. ^ a b c Fair, C. Christine (25 April 2014). Fighting to the End: The Pakistan Army's Way of War. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-989271-6. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
  7. ^ Inc, IBP (August 2013). Pakistan Intelligence, Security Activities and Operations Handbook - Strategic Information and Developments. Lulu.com. ISBN 978-1-4387-3722-5. Retrieved 18 November 2023. {{cite book}}: |last1= has generic name (help)
  8. ^ Ganguly, Šumit; O'Donnell, Frank (28 October 2022). Routledge Handbook of the International Relations of South Asia. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 978-1-000-75552-7. Retrieved 18 November 2023.

Further reading

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  • Cloughley, Brian (1999). A History of the Pakistan Army: Wars and Insurrections. Karachi, Sind, Pakistan: Karachi University Press. ISBN 9780195790153.