Lieutenant General Mohammad Asim Malik, head of Pakistan’s intelligence agency Inter-Services Intelligence, has been appointed National Security Adviser of Pakistan. The appointment on this post , which was vacant for many months , has been made at a time when relations between India and Pakistan have deteriorated after the terrorist attack in Pahalgam on 22 April 2025.
Lieutenant General Asim Malik, who has been close to Pakistani Army Chief General Asim Munir since his early career days, was given the command of ISI in September 2024 itself. Although, General Malik has been given additional charge of the post of NSA.
According to a notification issued by the Cabinet Division of Pakistan on Tuesday, Lieutenant General Asim Malik will also hold the post of NSA in addition to his current role as Director General of Inter-Services Intelligence.
This is the first time that a serving ISI chief has been made NSA in Pakistan. Lieutenant General Malik has become the 10th person to hold this post. The post of NSA in Pakistan was vacant since April 2022 when Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) party was removed from power. At that time Dr. Moeed Yusuf was holding the post of NSA of Pakistan.
Prior to serving as the Director General of ISI, Mohammad Asim Malik had served as the Adjutant General at the General Headquarters of the Pakistan Army, where he oversaw military administrative matters, including legal and disciplinary matters.
Lt Gen Asim Malik has also commanded divisions in Balochistan and South Waziristan during his career. These regions are facing huge security challenges.
Malik’s appointment comes at a time when both countries are engaged in military action against each other. The most recent steps taken by New Delhi include closing its airspace to all Pakistani aircraft and suspending social media channels of popular Pakistani personalities including Hania Aamir, Mahira Khan and Ali Zafar.
Ceasefire violations continued along the LoC for the seventh consecutive day on Thursday, while on Wednesday, unprovoked small arms firing was reported from Pakistan along the International Border in Akhnoor sector of Jammu and Kashmir.
After the terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that India will identify, track and punish every terrorist and their supporters. Prime Minister Narendra Modi told top defense officials on Tuesday that the armed forces have “complete operational freedom” to decide on the manner, target and timing of India’s response to the Pahalgam attack.
Pakistan has announced a tit for tat action. Pakistan recently reiterated in a press conference that it had nothing to do with the Pahalgam attack and threatened to respond strongly if it was “provoked”.
Who is Lieutenant General Asim Malik:
Asim Malik was born in a military family in Shahpur tehsil of Sargodha district of Punjab in Pakistan. His father Ghulam Mohammad Malik retired as Lieutenant General. Asim Malik was commissioned in the 12th Baloch Regiment in 1989. Lieutenant General Asim Malik won the Sword of Honor of the 80th Pakistan Military Academy Long Course.
Asim Malik served as Chief Instructor at the National Defence University in Islamabad and as an instructor at the Pakistan Command and Staff College in Quetta.
Throughout his military career, Asim Malik was part of the Baloch Regiment and as a Major General, he led the 41st Infantry Division in Balochistan. He has also commanded an Infantry Brigade in Waziristan. Asim Malik also has experience working in the Directorate of Military Operations.
