Sharif likely to name new ISI chief next week: Report

Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is likely to name a new director general for the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) next week.

He is also likely to clear the appointments of five new lieutenant generals in the Pakistan Army, the Dawn quoted a BBC Urdu report, as saying on Thursday.

According to the daily, Prime Minister Sharif has been considering a couple of names for ISI chief.

The BBC Urdu report revealed that among the names under consideration are Lahore corps commander Lt. Gen. Naveed Zaman and the president of the National Defence University, Lt. Gen. Javed Iqbal Ramday.

Others reportedly under consideration are Major General Nazeer Butt and Major General Rizwan Akhtar.

Sources privacy to the development told BBC Urdu that Chief of Army Staff General Raheel Sharif wanted to promote certain military officials from the rank of Major General to that of Lieutenant General.

These appointments are likely to come before the naming of the new ISI chief so that one of these Lt. Gens. might be considered for the top intelligence slot.

The development is expected as current ISI chief Lt. Gen. Zaheer ul Islam and five lieutenant generals are scheduled to retire from service in the first week of October.

The other military officers retiring in October are Mangla corps commander Lt. Gen. Tariq Khan, Gujranwala corps commander Lt. Gen. Saleem Nawaz, Peshawar corps commander Lt. Gen. Khalid Rabbani and Karachi corps commander Lt. Gen. Sajjad Ghani.

All five positions are of paramount importance in the military but the chief of the ISI is regarded as the army's most important official after the army chief himself. The ISI chief is appointed by the prime minister, traditionally on the advice of the army chief. The latter is also expected to meet Prime Minister Sharif prior to appointing the five Lt. Gens.