Muhammad Aziz Khan

Infobox Military Person
name= Muhammad Aziz Khan
lived= born January 1, 1947 (age 60)
placeofbirth=
placeofdeath=


caption=
nickname=
allegiance= flagicon|PAK Pakistan
branch=Pakistan Army
serviceyears= 1966–2004
rank= General
current position=
commands= Force Commander Northern Areas (FCNA, Gilgit)
Chief of General Staff (CGS)
IV Corps (Lahore)
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
unit=
battles=Indo-Pakistan War of 1965
Indo-Pakistan War of 1971
Kargil War
awards=Hilal-e-Imtiaz (Military)
Nishan-e-Imtiaz (Military)
laterwork=

General Muhammad Aziz Khan (born January 1, 1947) is a retired Pakistani general who served as the Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff, Chief of General Staff (CGS) and Commander IV Corps, Lahore. [ [http://www.dawn.com/2001/10/08/top10.htm 'New Vice Chief and CJCSC'] ] . He was instrumental in bringing General Pervez Musharraf to power in the 1999 coup d'etat that overthrew the democratically elected government of Nawaz Sharif, along with the then Commander X Corps Lieutenant General Mahmud Ahmed.

Initial career

General Aziz Khan was commissioned in the Pakistan Army in 1966 in the Infantry's Punjab Regiment. He was a graduate of Command and Staff College, Quetta and National Defence College, Rawalpindi. As a brigadier, Aziz worked as the Chief of Staff (COS) of the X Corps under the then Corps Commander Lt Gen Ghulam Muhammad Malik and also commanded an infantry brigade in the Siachen area around the same time. After that, he served as the deputy director of Inter-Services Intelligence. He was then posted as the Commander Force Command Northern Areas (FCNA), Gilgit who is responsible for the entire Kashmir region and Northern Areas operations (It is worthy to mention that the entire Pakistani forces in Kargil War was conducted by then Commander FCNA Maj Gen Javed Hassan).

Chief of General Staff

From there, Aziz was promoted to Lt Gen in October 1998 by Pervez Musharraf who took over as Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) around the same time. During the Kargil War in 1999, General Aziz Khan was serving as the Chief of General Staff (CGS) under General Pervez Musharraf. Secret recordings of conversations between General Musharraf and General Aziz were apparently "intercepted" by the Indian intelligence during the Kargil Campaign. Said recordings proved that Pakistan Army had secretly invaded Kashmir.

When Aziz Khan was made the Chief of General Staff (CGS), the posting was contrary to norms of Army, as generally the senior most Lt. Gen. occupy it and is considered the second-in-command of the Army. In August 2000, Aziz Khan was transferred as Corps Commander Lahore (August 2000 - October 2001).

Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff

After the 9/11 terrorist attacks and the subsequent US invasion of Afghanistan, General Aziz Khan was transferred to the ceremonial post of Chairmanship of Joints Chiefs of Staff. He also stayed as the Colonel-in-Chief of the Punjab Regiment appointed by General Pervez Musharraf on 21 March, 2003. [http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=story_22-3-2003_pg7_4 "Army can defend every inch: Musharraf"] "Daily Times", March 22, 2003]

Aziz Khan also stayed as the honorary president of Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) from July 2000 to January 2005.

General Aziz is currently writing his memoirs. He belongs to the influential Sudhan tribe of Azad Kashmir. He is married and has three daughters and one son.

References

External links

* [http://www.indianembassy.org/int_media/mullah_saag_sep_09_00.html 'The Mullahs' Blue-Eyed General']

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