Iqbal Khan (general)

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Muhammad Iqbal Khan

Khan (right) c. 1980
Birth nameMohammad Iqbal Khan
Nickname(s)M.I. Khan
BornPindi Gheb, Punjab, British India
DiedRawalpindi, Punjab, Pakistan
Allegiance British Raj (1944-1947)
 Pakistan (1947-1984)
Service/branchBritish Raj British Indian Army
Pakistan Pakistan Army
Years of service1944–1984
Rank General
Service numberPA – 2052[1]
UnitGuides Infantry, Frontier Force
Commands heldChairman Joint Chiefs of Staff
Deputy Chief of Army Staff
V Corps in Karachi
IV Corps in Lahore
Chief of General Staff, Army GHQ
33rd Infantry Division, Quetta
DG Military Intelligence (DG MI)
Battles/warsIndo-Pakistani War of 1947
Indo-Pakistani War of 1965
Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 Baloch insurgency of 1970s
Soviet–Afghan War
AwardsNishan-e-Imtiaz (Military)
Hilal-e-Imtiaz (Military)
Sitara-e-Imtiaz (Military)
Sitara-e-Basalat

Mohammad Iqbal Khan NI(M) HI(M) SI(M) SBt (Urdu: اقبال خان‬) (1924–2000) was a senior general in the Pakistan Army who served as the third Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee from being appointed in 1980 until 1984.[2][3]

Biography[edit]

Mohammad Iqbal Khan was educated and graduated from the Military College in Jhelum and was commissioned in the British Indian Army in 1944.[3] He joined the Guides Infantry in the 2nd Frontier Force Regiment as 2nd-Lt. and later serving in the first war with India on Kashmir front in 1947.[3][4]

After participating in Second war with India in 1965, Brigadier Iqbal was appointed as the Director-General of the Military Intelligence in 1969, and was politically involved in supporting the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) against the Awami League.: 50 [5] Eventually, Brig. Iqbal held the responsibility of Military Intelligence in 1971.[6]

In 1971–73, Major-General Iqbal held the command of the 33rd Infantry Division in Quetta as its GOC, and oversaw the military operations against the armed insurgency groups in Balochistan in Pakistan.[7]

In 1974, Major General Iqbal was posted as Chief of General Staff (CGS) under Chief of Army Staff General Tikka Khan at the Army GHQ in Rawalpindi which he served until 1976.[8] In 1976, Maj-Gen. Iqbal was promoted to the three-star rank army general and was posted as field commander of the IV Corps based in Lahore.[9]

In 1977, Lieutenant-General Iqbal took over the control of the Punjab in Pakistan as its martial law administrator when Chief of Army Staff Gen. Zia-ul-Haq imposed the martial law against the civilian government on 5 July 1977.: 194 [10] Lt-Gen. Iqbal was later rotated when Lt-Gen. Sawar Khan took command of the IV Corps, and appointed as the field commander of the V Corps and served as the martial law administrator of Sindh in Pakistan.[11]

In 1978, Lt-Gen. Iqbal was again posted at the Army GHQ in Rawalpindi when he was appointed as the Deputy Chief of Army Staff (DCOAS) under President Zia-ul-Haq.: 430 [12] During this time, he was appointed as the Colonel Commandant of the Frontier Force Regiment, which he served until his retirement in 1984.[1]

Chairman Joint chiefs (1980–1984)[edit]

In 1980, Lt-Gen. Iqbal, who at that time was the senior military officer in the military, was promoted to the four-star rank and appointed as the Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee.: 156 [12]

In 1980, Gen. Iqbal played a crucial role in maintaining of the Afghan Arabs in the country and supported the anti-Russian agitation when Soviet Union intervened in Afghanistan.: contents [13] Gen. iqbal eventually and coordinated the national security meetings concerning the covert efforts in Afghanistan.: contents [13]: viii [14] In 1984, Gen. Iqbal completed his four-year term and eventually retired from the military.[2]

Awards and decorations[edit]

Nishan-e-Imtiaz

(Military)

(Order of Excellence)

Hilal-e-Imtiaz

(Military)

(Crescent of Excellence)

Sitara-e-Imtiaz

(Military)

(Star of Excellence)

Sitara-e-Basalat

(Star of Good Conduct)

Tamgha-e-Diffa

(General Service Medal)

Tamgha-e-Jang 1965 War

(War Medal 1965)

Tamgha-e-Jang 1971 War

(War Medal 1971)

Pakistan Tamgha

(Pakistan Independence Medal)

1947

Tamgha-e-Sad Saala Jashan-e-

Wiladat-e-Quaid-e-Azam

(100th Birth Anniversary of Muhammad Ali Jinnah)

1976

Tamgha-e-Jamhuria

(Republic Commemoration Medal)

1956

Hijri Tamgha

(Hijri Medal)

1979

Order of Military Merit

(Jordan)

War Medal 1939-1945 United Nations

UN UNOC 1 Medal

(Congo Clasp)

Foreign Decorations[edit]

Foreign Awards
 Jordan The Order of Military Merit
 UK War Medal 1939-1945
 UN UN UNOC 1 Medal

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b Pakistan (1978). The Gazette of Pakistan. Retrieved 6 April 2018.
  2. ^ a b "CJCSC office in Pakistan and the world over". The News International. Islamabad. 8 October 2013. Retrieved 6 April 2018.
  3. ^ a b c "Honours of MCJ". Military College Jhelum. Retrieved 6 April 2018.
  4. ^ A.H. Amin. "Interview with Brig (retd) Shamim Yasin Manto" Archived 2013-05-03 at the Wayback Machine Defence Journal, February 2002
  5. ^ Siddiqi, brigadier Abdul Rahman (2004). East Pakistan, the endgame : an onlooker's journal, 1969-1971. Karachi: Oxford University Press. p. 260. ISBN 9780195799934.
  6. ^ Hamid Hussain. "Demons of December" Archived 2011-06-09 at the Wayback Machine Defence Journal, 2002 December
  7. ^ Sehgal, Maj. Ikram (23 August 2007). "Learning from experience". The Daily Star. Islamabad. Retrieved 6 April 2018.
  8. ^ A.H. Amin "Remembering Our Warriors: Maj Gen (Retd) Tajammal Hussain Malik" Archived 2016-03-03 at the Wayback Machine Defence Journal, September 2001
  9. ^ "Remembering Our Warriors". www.researchgate.net. Retrieved 6 April 2018.
  10. ^ Norman, Omar (2013). "(§Ethnic Conflict)". Pakistan:Political and Economics History since 1947 (google books). New York [u.s.]: Routledge. p. 225. ISBN 9781136143946. Retrieved 6 April 2018.
  11. ^ Rizwan Hussain. Pakistan and the Emergence of Islamic Militancy in Afghanistan Ashgate Publishing, 2005, ISBN 0-7546-4434-0
  12. ^ a b "Pakistan under Zia, 1977–1988" by Shahid Javed Burki Asian Survey, Vol. 28, No. 10 (October, 1988), pp. 1082–1100
  13. ^ a b Hilali, A. Z. (2017). US-Pakistan Relationship: Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan. Routledge. ISBN 9781351876223. Retrieved 6 April 2018.
  14. ^ Matinuddin, Kamal (1991). Power struggle in the Hindu Kush: Afghanistan, 1978-1991. Wajidalis. Retrieved 6 April 2018.
Military offices
Preceded by
M. Rahim Khan
Chief of General Staff
1974–1976
Succeeded by
Abdullah Malik
Preceded by Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee
1980–1984
Succeeded by