ISLAMABAD: There had been reports flying around that former army chief General (r) Raheel Sharif was being made the chief of 39-nation Islamic military coalition to combat terrorism, and Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif confirmed this on Friday.
Asif admitted that an agreement was finalised few days back about this, but the minister claimed not to have much information at the moment about the said agreement.
Speaking in a talk show at a private news channel, Asif said that after taking the current government into confidence, the decision was finalised.
The minister confirmed that the due process was followed before the agreement was finalised as any such task requires clearance from the government and the General Headquarters (GHQ). However, the minister claimed to be unaware of the exact details.
“This has been in the pipeline for quite some time now and I’m very sure that all of you are well aware of it. The prime minister was also part of the deliberations,” Asif said. He was of the opinion that formation of such an alliance is a good step, as the Muslims need to unite.
Earlier, Saudi Arabia named Pakistan in its newly formed military alliance of Muslim countries, meant to combat terrorism. But Saudi Arabia forgot to ask Pakistan before making this decision, forcing the country into the crosshairs of Middle Eastern politics.
