Pakistan appoints ISI chief Asim Malik as NSA amid escalating tensions with India over Pahalgam terror attack

Pakistan has named its present spy chief, Lt Gen Muhammad Asim Malik, as the brand new National Security Adviser (NSA), marking the primary time a serving Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) director basic will concurrently maintain each essential positions.
The appointment, introduced via a Cabinet Division notification on Tuesday, comes at a important time as India-Pakistan relations proceed to deteriorate following the lethal Pahalgam terror attack on April 22, which claimed 26 civilian lives. The incident has triggered a sequence of retaliatory actions between the 2 nuclear-armed neighbors.
Lt Gen Malik, who assumed the function of ISI chief in October 2024, turns into Pakistan’s tenth National Security Adviser. The place had remained vacant for 2 years following the departure of Dr Moeed Yusuf in April 2022, when the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf authorities was faraway from energy.
The notification acknowledged, “Lt Gen Muhammad Asim Malik HI (M), DG (I), shall hold the additional charge of the National Security Adviser, with immediate effect.”
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has denied India’s allegations linking Pakistan to the Pahalgam attack. Sharif known as for an unbiased investigation into the incident and urged the United States to discourage India from making provocative statements.
Addressing the Indus Waters Treaty problem, Sharif emphasised that the settlement, which gives important water assets to 240 million folks, doesn’t permit for unilateral withdrawal by both nation.