Khalid Mahmud Arif

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Khalid Mahmud Arif
Native name
خالد محمود عارف
Nickname(s) Silencer
Born 1930 (age 93–94)
Allegiance  Pakistan
Service/branch  Pakistan Army
Years of service 1949–1987
Rank US-O10 insignia.svg General
Service number PA–3107
Unit Army Armoured Corps
Commands held Chief of Army Staff
Army Chief of Staff (COS)
GOC 111th Army Brigade
X Corps
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[1]

Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. General Khalid Mahmud Arif (Urdu: خالد محمود عارف‎; born 1930; popularly known as General K.M. Arif), was a senior four-star ranking general officer who served as the vice chief of army staff of Pakistan Army under President General Zia-ul-Haq. Working as the principal military adviser to Zia's military government in the capacity of Chief of Staff, Arif rose to become Zia's closest collaborator and confidant who worked closely on matters of national security, overseeing and handling major civil-military issues directly involving the country's internal and foreign security.

Preceded by Lieutenant-General Syed Refaqat as chief of staff until General Zia-ul-Haq's death in the 1988 plane crash, Arif reached a four-star rank and commanded the Pakistan Army as its designated vice chief of army staff in place of General Sawar Khan who was due for retirement, in March 1984. He held on to this post for three years, after which he was himself replaced by General Mirza Aslam Beg in March 1987.

Early Life and education

Arif was born in East Punjab and was a refugee from eastern Punjab who immigrated to West-Pakistan after independence in 1947.[2] After passing the ISSB, Arif joined PMA as a cadet, and two and a half years later, in 1948, he was commissioned into the Pakistan Army Armoured Corps, and was selected for further training in the United States. In 1950, Arif graduated from the United States Army Armor School at Fort Knox.[3] Throughout the 1950s, Arif attended the joint service course at the Command and Staff College, and held the staff assignments in the Army.

Between wars: 1965 and 1971 war

Arif knew Zia-ul-Haq since his day as an army Captain, and actively participated in the Arif 1965 September war, with Zia-ul-Haq.[4] After the 1965 war, Arif was stationed in East-Pakistan and appointed as martial law officer (MLO) at the Eastern High Command led under Admiral Syed Mohammad Ahsan. In 1967, Arif took extreme close initiatives with then-Major-General Yakob Khan formulating an integrated battle plan for the province, dubbed "Operation X-Sunderbans-1".[4] X-Sunderbans-1 was a non-combat military exercise designed to form the basis for the operational combat plan. In East-Pakistan, Arif remained an influential member of the Military government, responsible for deployment of junior units in the province as well as overseeing law and order in the province. Arif fought well in East Pakistan war and the 1971 Winter war leading him to earn a decoration in the former East-Pakistan.[4]

Staff Appointments

His efforts in the Indo-Pakistani war of 1971 and accounts of bravery in East Pakistan, prompted Zulfikar Ali Bhutto to accept the recommendation to decorate Arif with the Nishan-i-Imtiaz (Military) and the Sitara-i-Basalat in 1974, after his release by the Indian Army as POW. In 1975, Arif was promoted to the rank of Colonel, and then to Brigadier-General in 1977 and subsequently became the GOC of 111th Infantry Brigade of X Corps.[4]

Operation Fair Play

Arif's 111th Brigade was subsequently used by General Zia-ul-Haq to topple the government of Prime minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto.[4] While the Military Police initiated a massive arrests of PPP activists and members, the X Corps and other military units consolidated the entire control of the country into the hands of General Zia-ul-Haq. According to Lieutenant General F.A. Chishti, the former Colonel Commandant of Ralwalpindi-based X Corps who helped General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq to overthrow the democratic government of Prime minister Zulfikar A. Bhutto in 1977 military coup; Lieutenant-General Chisti had said: "General Zia was lucky to have Major General Arif as his life long confidante. He had experience as a Martial Law Officer during General's Yahya's regime and handled matters efficiently."[5]

Chief of Army Staff

A quintessential staff officer he, Arif was a GOC of 111th Brigade for only eight months. Following General Zia assuming control of the country, Arif's career sped up.[6] Despite commanding large military formations, Arif was promoted rapidly, commanding the staff assignments rather than the field assignments.[6] In 1977, Arif was hastily made Lieutenant-General and shifted as Army Chief of Staff in 1977.[6] He replaced the aging generals in his staff, bringing the most qualified officers who previously worked with him.[6]

In 1984, Arif was finally appointed to four-star rank and appointed as Chief of Army Staff of Pakistan.[6] This promotion made General Arif a de facto Chief of Army Staff of Pakistan Army with the entire commanding staff reporting to Arif.[6]

Soviet war in Afghanistan

In 1979, after attending the meeting, General Zia formed a meeting compromising five civilian statesmen and senior military officers, most notable of which were Foreign minister Agha Shahi, Pakistan Ambassador to Afghanistan Kazi Humayun, DG of ISI General Akhtar Abdur Rahman, Lieutenant-General Yakob Khan, and Chief of Army Staff General K.M. Arif prepared a draft after consultation with strategists, intellectuals, practitioners, scholars and academics and senior statesman, highlighting and recommending options for Pakistan.[7] Arif remained a vital figure in the Soviet war in Afghanistan, coordinating the international logistics against the Soviet Union in Afghanistan and managing international aid to Pakistan as well.[7]

Consolidation of atomic bomb project

In 1978, Zia completely disbanded the civilian committee under dr. Mubashir Hassan, therefore, General Arif played a major role in formulating the nuclear policy and military control of the atomic bomb project.[8] General Zia acknowledged the importance of success for this atomic bomb programme, therefore General Arif made frequent trips to the United States to hold talks on the ongoing atomic bomb project, and successfully convinced the United States to allow the atomic bomb project to continue,in light of the Soviet war.[8] General Arif made it clear to the United States that "[Pakistan] won't compromise on its nuclear weapons programme, but won't conduct a test to harm to United States-Pakistan relations".[8] In 1983, the CIA placed a mole near the Kahuta but was thwarted by the ISI.[8] According to General Arif, the ISI took the mole to its secret museum to train its own spies in espionage operations.[8]

According to the dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan, General Arif was an uptight and strict army officer who was directly and indirectly involved in nuclear weapon development. General K.M. Arif was also responsible for the security of Pakistan's scientists and its nuclear facilities. Arif oversaw the secret testing of nuclear weapons by the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission led by its chairman Munir Ahmad Khan, throughout his career, and developed cordial relationships with both Munir Ahmad Khan and Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan. General Arif was one of the high-ranking officers who witnessed first hand the first cold test by PAEC of a nuclear device in Kirana Hills in 1983.

Post Retirement

General Arif retired from the Army and was succeeded by General Mirza Aslam Beg as Chief of Army Staff. After his retirement, General Arif focused on poetry and authored a book "Khaki Shadows" in 2001, giving accounts of the military history of Pakistan during the cold war.[9]

Currently, Arif is Chairman of the Pakistan Security and Development Association, a non-government and autonomous research body. He is also a prolific writer, contributing articles to national newspapers, and is well known for his first book "Working with Zia", published by Oxford University Press, and for his anthologies of Urdu poetry.

References

  1. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ Pakistan under Zia, 1977-1988 By Shahid Javed Burki Asian Survey, Vol. 28, No. 10 (Oct., 1988), pp. 1082-1100
  3. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  5. ↑ Shahid Javed Burki. "Pakistan: Fifty Years of Nationhood (Westview Publishers, 1999)"
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  9. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
Military offices
Preceded by Vice Chief of Army Staff
1984 – 1987		 Succeeded by
Mirza Aslam Beg

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