Chief of Defence Forces notification to be issued in due course of time: Khawaja Asif
Defence minister urges Muslim nations to reassess Gaza stance over Israeli violations
ISLAMABAD: Defence Minister Khawaja Asif on Sunday said that the notification regarding the Chief of Defence Forces’ (CDF) appointment would be issued “in due course of time”, the process for which has started.
“Please be informed that the process has been initiated. PM is returning shortly. Notification will be issued in due course of time,” Asif said in a post on social media platform X.
The CDF position, created under the 27th Constitutional Amendment, replaced the now-abolished office of the Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (CJCSC), which formally ended on Nov 27. It will be a dual-hatted position combined with the office of the army chief.
Officials and observers had expected the new notification to coincide with the abolition of the CJCSC post, but November 29 was seen as a critical marker, being the date on which the original three-year tenure of the incumbent Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Field Marshal Asim Munir, was set to expire.
Asif’s statement came as the November 29 date passed without any notification being issued to formally appoint the country’s first CDF.
His statement implies that the notification will be issued upon Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s return to the country, who is currently visiting London.
Some legal experts had argued that without a new notification, Field Marshal Munir’s tenure could be interpreted as having lapsed.
However, a 2024 amendment to the Pakistan Army Act extended the tenure of the service chiefs to five years. That change included a “deeming” clause stating that the amendment “shall always be deemed to have been part of the Pakistan Army Act”, a formulation that legal minds say removed the requirement for a fresh notification extending the COAS tenure from three to five years.
Still, there is near consensus among security and legal officials that the creation of the CDF post, a new assignment rather than a continuation, does require a formal notification. Under the 27th Amendment and subsequent changes to the Army Act, the army chief will simultaneously serve as the CDF for a five-year term.
Meanwhile, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif on Sunday expressed concerns about Israel’s commitment to peace in Gaza, saying that Muslim countries that had supported the peace treaty may need to “reassess their stance” in the face of continued violations of the fragile ceasefire in the region.
The defence minister posted on Sunday on social media platform X that the ceasefire agreement had been criticised for being one-sided and that Israeli forces “continue to violate the truce, killing Palestinians including children”. Despite the declaration of a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas on October 9, Israel has continued to bombard the territory while a long-term plan for peace is discussed. Staff Report
