In a significant development for Pakistan’s counter-terrorism framework, a key official of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), Major General Faisal Naseer, has been appointed national coordinator of the National Counter Terrorism Authority (Nacta).
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official → appoint → Authority
According to a notification issued by the establishment division on Friday, Maj Gen Naseer’s, HI(M), T. Bt & Bar, appointment was made with the approval of the federal government.
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appointment → accord → government
He will serve as national coordinator, Nacta, under Section 9(1) of the Nacta Act, 2013, on a secondment basis.
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He → serve → basis
According to an Establishment Division official, the transfer of a civilian officer is made through deputation, while serving army officers are posted from one organisation to another on a secondment basis.
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officers → accord → basis
Commenting on the decision, a senior official within Nacta said there had been a proposal that the counter-terrorism authority should be run by a seasoned army or intelligence official.
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authority → comment → official
The move appears to be aimed at bringing greater strategic and operational experience to the authority, which has faced challenges in the past.
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which → appear → past
The official noted that the authority had previously operated without a proper strategy.
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authority → note → strategy
The appointment comes at a critical time for Nacta, which has historically struggled to function effectively as the country’s lead civilian counter-terrorism authority.
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which → come → authority
Despite being envisioned as a “one-window operation” to coordinate national counter-terrorism efforts, the agency has often been sidelined.
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agency → envision → efforts
In practice, the authority never fully evolved into the command and coordination body envisaged under the law, and has largely remained a policy secretariat with limited capacity to enforce decisions across the country’s sprawling security and law enforcement apparatus.
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authority → evolve → apparatus
Initiatives taken over the last decade, including the establishment of the National Intelligence Fusion and Threat Assessment Centre (NIFTAC) under Nacta, have raised concerns about centralisation and the weakening of democratic oversight.
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Initiatives → take → oversight
The authority has also seen frequent changes at the top, with more than a dozen National Coordinators since its inception, most of them drawn from the police service.
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most → see → service
The appointment of Maj Gen Naseer, therefore, marks a departure from the usual practice.
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appointment → mark → practice
He had been serving as DG (counter-intelligence) since 2022, shortly after his promotion to the rank of major general.
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He → serve → general
The DG (C) post is often mistakenly described as heading the ISI’s counter-intelligence wing.
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post → describe → wing
However, the officer actually heads the agency’s Internal Wing, which deals with domestic security and political matters and, because of the nature of the assignment, frequently engages with the country’s principal power centres.
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which → head → centres
In the military’s conventional career progression, an officer moved out of an active military assignment is generally considered to have diminished prospects for further promotion, although exceptions have occurred.
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exceptions → move → promotion
Maj Gen Naseer’s transfer to Nacta has, consequently, left many observers surprised.
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transfer → leave → observers
The Aporia
