Alam Khattak

Infobox Military Person
name= Muhammad Alam Khattak
lived=محمّدخٹک


placeofbirth= Nowshera, North West Frontier Province, Pakistan
placeofdeath=
caption=
nickname=
allegiance= flagicon|PAK Pakistan
branch=Pakistan Army
serviceyears= 1975–
rank= Major General
current position=
commands= 33rd Infantry Division
Frontier Corps (NWFP)
unit= Infantry (Frontier Force)
battles=War in North-West Pakistan
awards=Hilal-i-Imtiaz (Military)
Tamgha-e-Basalat
laterwork=

Major General Muhammad Alam Khattak, HI(M), TBt, is a Pakistan Army officer who has been in charge of the Frontier Corps as its Inspector-General and has led it most notably in the Waziristan War from 2006 to 2008. In September 2008, he was replaced by GOC 14th Infantry Division Maj-Gen Tariq Khan as the Inspector General Frontier Corps (NWFP). [Ismail Khan [http://www.dawn.com/2008/09/21/top4.htm "Battle to be won or lost in Bajaur"] "Dawn", 21 September, 2008]

Early life

Alam Khattak was born in Nowshera and was commissioned in the Pakistan Army's famed Frontier Force Regiment in 1975

Military career

Khattak first came to prominence in 2004-2005, when as commander of Pakistan's 33rd Infantry Division in Quetta he was thrust into battle against Balochi tribal militants. Despite a few early setbacks he was able to more or less destroy the militancy, through a combination of diplomacy (he helped to create a tribal militia to counter the militants called the "Marri Force") and decisive action when merited. This brought him to the fore and he was sent to another hotspot as commander of the paramilitary Frontier Corps in 2006. Here he applied the lessons learned and unlike his predecessor insisted on dialogue which ultimately led to the 2006 peace deal. Unfortunately this was used by foreign militants to regroup and led to a spate of suicide bombings in Pakistan in 2007. The end of the ceasefire and the militants offensive brought FC under tremendous pressure and Khattak was criticised. However, he had by late 2007 and 2008 in conjunction with regular army troops managed to bring most of the restive Swat and Waziristan areas under some aspect of authority as evidenced by Baitullah Mehsud's (the militant commander's unilateral ceasefire).

Future

General Khattak is at present (with US help) overseeing a transformation of the Frontier Corps from a paramilitary organisation dedicated mainly for heavy policing, to a full fledge force capable of conducting counter-insurgency operations and assist the army in other tasks. [http://www.thenews.com.pk/top_story_detail.asp?Id=13324] . As an officer with extensive operational command experience he is one of the men who could be a contender for the Army Chiefs Job in a few year time, though his relative juniority and the fact that fortunes in FATA could yet take a turn for the worse, could jeopardize his prospects.

He was replaced by Maj-Gen Tariq Khan as the Inspector General in September 2008.

Personal life

General Khattak is an ethnic Pashtun from the famous Khattak tribe which has provided warriors for millennia and soldier to Pakistan since its founding.

References