Pak govt faces criticism for allowing ex-army chief to head Saudi-led coalition

The move is critical as it is coming exactly on the second anniversary of the Saudi-led war on Yemen.

In April 2015, days after Saudi Arabia launched heavy strikes on Yemen, after an extraordinary weeklong debate, Pakistan parliament unanimously approved a resolution urging the government to stay neutral in the face of demands from Riyadh to join its military strike against Yemen.

Former Pakistan President General Pervez Musharraf has said General Raheel Sharif should think carefully before accepting Saudi Arabia’s offer to lead the military alliance.

“Raheel Sharif served as the army chief of Pakistan and he should think over the issue,” Musharraf said.

The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI), main opposition party has opposed the government’s decision to allow former Raheel Sharif to assume the command of a yet-to-be-formed, Saudi-led 39-nation military alliance.

“We strongly oppose this decision and will soon raise the issue in the parliament,” PTI spokesman Fawwad Chaudhry told media.

Pakistan’s Minister for States and Frontier Regions Abdul Qadir Baloch has also said if former army chief Gen Raheel Sharif accepts the appointment as head of military alliance he will become controversial.

“If Raheel Sharif takes up the appointment, he will become controversial and I feel it might lessen the respect he has earned,” said Baloch while talking to media.

Defence Analyst Lt. General (retired) Talat Masood hopes the government would stick to its historic approach and not join any alliance at the expense of its relationship with other Muslim countries namely Iran.

Former Pakistani ambassador to the US Ashraf Jehangir Qazi also believes that appointment of Raheel Sharif as the head of Saudi-led alliance would be a very unwise step and contradictory to the previous stance of Pakistan on Yemen war.

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